May 16, 2008

An audit of Neel Metal is due . . .

Are you really satisfied with the performance of Neel Metal Fanalca?
Yes or No?
If you are, tell us what you think is good about its work.
If you aren't, vent your feelings.
For, it is time people took a close and hard look at Neel Metal, the private garbage clearing agency engaged by the Chennai Corporation to work in four of the ten zones of this city.
If you asked for my opinion, I'd rate it 3 on a scale of 10.Yes, 3/10.On a summer afternoon, I would say 2.5.
First of all, I think the operations of Neel Metal are not all that hunky dory. And this has been the case from the time it was given the contract.
(I will leave the Chennai Corporation out of this column for now.)
Their launch was a disaster. Their follow-up was lame.
Now, this company seems to work on a leg and a half!
Its staff are disorganised at work. And that is evident on our streets and roads.
The door-to-door garbage clearance plan (which was slipped in quietly after it began its operations) has not been a strong one.Today, waste lies on all our streets. Off and on, it is cleared.
But this is not done systematically.
Bins overflow. The stink hangs around in many corners.
And that is why Neel Metal deserves just 3 on 10.
And yet, there has not been a concerted effort by us to audit the performance of a vital private operator who is paid our monies. To have an Open House on this subject. And to get the company to deliver or quit.
I have not come across many people who have sung the praises of Neel Metal.
I think there are more people who positively acknowledge the record of Onyx which did the same job earlier.
So if you value the taxes you pay the state, it is time to express your opinion loudly first and then be part of an effort to audit the company who is paid to clear waste and keep our city clean.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

You are being generous to Neel Metal. They get only 1/10 in my book. The staff are rude and clean areas only near politicians' houses. Onyx was far better any day. Onyx staff used to wear gloves and handle refuse the way it ought to be handled. Neel Metal staff work with bare hands. Most of them are often found gossiping instead of working. It is a crying shame that Onyx has been replaced.

Anonymous said...

I would second the Anonymous in awarding 1/10. Even after repeated phone calls to the Corporation office in the Area and sometimes to AC, the situation has not improved.

6th Cross Street, CIT Colony

Anonymous said...

neel metal fanalca is a miserable failure.can we get onynx back and dump neel metalca?

Anonymous said...

I fully endorse your views on Neel Metal And their pathetic show.
It should be 0/10.
The vast ground behind TTk Hospital has become a dumping ground for Neel metal. Instead of removing the Wastes they are dumping it there. The stench is unbearable for the residents of the area.All the street corners have garbage piled up.
Something has to be done and urgently too, otherwise the whole of Indira Nagar would become one big garbage dump.
Corpn, Please wake up!

Anonymous said...

Neel Metal is making an awful hash of it. They are neither professional nor thorough. Only the bin is emptied -- pavements, street and gutters are left filled with leaves, blown-away paper and plastic bags. Workers are often missing for days. I remember the system of separating garbage had been started but that's all over now.

If there is a movement against Neel Metal, I would like to be part of it.

Anonymous said...

I completely agree. Neel Metal is doing such a shoddy job. Even if the bins are being emptied, they drop some of the garbage behind on the road.The city was so much cleaner when the contract was with Onyx.

I do agree that we ought not to allow ourselves to be taken for granted like this.

I would definitely like to be part of an audit of the company.

Unknown said...

I completely agree with you as well as others who have commented. Indeed you have been generous in giving a score of 3/10. I would give tnem 0 as some others have.

I reside on 14th. Cross at Shastri Nagar and 13th. and 14th. cross are seldom swept.

The question now is what can we and in particular Adayar Times do beyond an audit to throw Neel Metal Fenalca out and get Onyx back ? - Something like a Signature campaign and follow up campaigns ?

T N Swaminathan
29, 14th. Cross Street, Shastri Nagar.

narasimhan said...

I agree with what you are saying. I am staying near SIET college. The garbage near SIET I,II and cross not cleared for a number of days. Near by sugarjuice, ice water are being sold. At nights, it becomes a playing ground for stray dogs.
Neel metal corporation is not atall working. It is not even worth for "O marks.

Brooks Anderson said...

Dear Vincent,
I strongly encourage you to undertake an audit of NMF’s performance.
Unfortunately, solid waste management is a very neglected subject in India, and very little information is available.
I’m trying to develop a baseline for comparing the cost-effectiveness of swm services by different contractors in Chennai. I’d like to compare the cost of the services provided by Exnora Green Pammal, which peforms daily door-to-door collection of source-segregated waste, against the cost of services of Neel Metal Fanalca, which collects mixed waste from street bins and dumps such mixed waste in Chennai’s dumpsites.
For such comparison, I need the following information from NMF or from the CoC:
How much money has the CoC paid to NMF for any given period?
How much waste has NMF collected and transported for that period?
What is the population or number of households that NMF serves?
Would you please submit an RTI request to the CoC for this information? As a foreigner, I am not permitted to submit an RTI request.
I’ve written to the JBM Group, Neel Metal Fanalca’s parent company, in Haryana, but received no reply. Naturally, corporations won’t be transparent about any aspect of their business.
I would like to establish a baseline to determine which type of service provider/service model is more cost effective for the Indian taxpayer.
Your help in this matter would be very deeply appreciated.
Sincerely,
Brooks Anderson
brooks@auroville.org.in

Vincent D' Souza said...

Who will take the lead now?

I am surprised that organs like ExNoRa and CAG, civic leaders and political leaders havent even looked at this issue.

The first step is a smart RTI that seeks out all the details.

I am told there are issues that are between the lines and hence nobody cares.

A RTI will first give us all the info you need to have a debate and take this forward.