Nagpur Today Expose : Contractor siphoned off half salaries of computer operators in NMC

Advertisement

Nagpur News.

Half of the salary of contractual computer operators in Nagpur Municipal Corporation goes into the pocket of the recruitment firm that supplies manpower in the concerned category to the civic body. Not only this, the concerned firm has been reportedly involved in series of financial irregularity in the open knowledge of most the senior officials in NMC. However the authorities are reluctant to act tough against the firm that points to serious connivance with the top level officers in NMC.

nt-expose

NMC administration has awarded the contract for supplying computer operators on contract basis to renowned group Galaxy, which has been allegedly acting on its whims since the day it was assigned the task. Galaxy has placed its work heads in various NMC departments, as computer operators on contract.

Nagpur Today kept calling to the NMC Commissioner Shyam Wardhane on Monday for seeking his statement in this regard, but all efforts to reach out to him failed as his cell phone remained switched off for most part of the day.

Insiders informed that there seems to be no end to the plight of over 100 such computer operators who were signed in to work for 8-10 hours on daily basis. NMC administration pays to the contractor the sum of Rs 7,000-8,000 per month for each of the appointed computer operator. It came to light that about 50-60 percent of this amount is siphoned off by the contractor itself whereas the computer operators helplessly accept the petty salaries for working hours on stretch.

Corporators exerted influence

Some time back, there were around 80 computer operators working in NMC under the said contractor. It is learnt that the concerned corporators have exerted their influence upon Galaxy authorities and get their kin and relatives to the post of computer operators in NMC. This has taken the total number of functioning computer operators in NMC to 120. The net amount of Rs 7 to Rs 7.5 lakh is being paid every month by NMC to the contractor in the form of salaries for these contractual employees. Ironically, only half of the amount is actually disbursed among the employees while the rest of the amount is cannily pocketed by the contractor itself.

Salaries increased but beneficiaries at suffering end

It is interesting to note that during the last standing committee meet, the salary of these computer operators was increased to Rs 9,000 per month. Going by this calculation, the NMC will be paying Rs 10 to Rs 10.50 lakh to the contractor against salaries for all the operators. But, sources informed, the Galaxy would pass only half of the amount to its contractual employees.

Comp. operators mum under fear

Insiders information reveal that the NMC has been marred by serious corruption these days as it deadly lacks honest officers, employees, corporators and even union leaders. Under such a scheme of things these computer operators have kept mum under the fear of losing out on their jobs. It also surfaced that the contractor firm Galaxy was able to play up openly because of its ‘understanding’ with the NMC’s senior officials concerned. Sources even added that most of the top level officials knew of the Galaxy’s malfunctioning for over considerable period of time, but none pointed its fingers over the injustice to the contractual computer operators.

Dissent rules the roost in NMC

A great deal of chaos and dissent is seen among the NMC employees these days. Whereas the agitation has been going on to press for implementing 6th Pay Commission, some are protesting with their demand to bring daily wage employees into the salary bracket fixed under government rules, few are pushing for bonus to contractors while many of them are running after clearing their bills. Observers say it is the situation of complete mess up in NMC.