Date:13/03/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/03/13/stories/2007031317380300.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Vettiyaans to be made Corporation employees

Staff Reporter

CHENNAI : Around 190 vettiyaans or assistants at crematoria in the city are likely to become employees of the Chennai Corporation in a month or two.

The proposal, outlined at the Chennai Corporation budget here on Monday, would help uplift this downtrodden community, Mayor M. Subramanian said.

Frequent complaints were heard about these workers extorting money from those who bring bodies for cremation, he pointed out. He hoped that payment of a regular salary would do away with such complaints.

The details of the proposal are likely to be hammered out at the next council meeting. They would be given uniforms, the title of `crematorium assistant' and a standard scale of pay, officials said. Standard safety equipment, including gloves, are already being provided.

The proposal, first taken up by a special officer more than a decade ago and subsequently dropped, has been presented by elected representatives for the first time.