‘Changing lifestyles leading to more garbage in Chennai’

Keeping Chennai clean: A file photo of Neel Metal Fanalca’s garbage collection lorries.

D. Murali

Chennai, Aug. 20 The Chennai-based Neel Metal Fanalca Environment Management Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between Neel Metal Products Ltd, India and Fanalca, S.A Colombia, has said that it is targeting to break even this financial year.

The company, which has invested over Rs 30 crore in its operations here, operates in four zones in Chennai and is involved in sweeping of roads, door to door collection and transfer of garbage to transfer station and transporting it to landfills. The company gets a tipping fee from the corporation for the garbage sent to the landfill and is free to sell the material segregated.

During a recent interaction with Business Line, Mr Vinay Maheshwari, Director, Neel Metal Fanalca, stressed the need to go beyond waste management. “It is important to look at segregating wastage at source and to recycle waste in scientific ways without harming the environment. One should also look at using the waste to generate power, which will help save our fossil fuel reserves.”

He said that while Chennai has been a pioneer in municipal solid waste management, having privatised these services in 2000, this concept was still at a very nascent stage in India. On the possibility of looking beyond Chennai, Mr Maheshwari said he was hopeful of expanding operations to other cities in Tamil Nadu as well as to other metros and non-metros in the next 2-3 years.

Global practices

The joint venture with Fanalca has helped Neel Metal bring in global expertise to Chennai, he avers. “We have adopted global best practices in safety measures, working conditions and fuel consumption monitoring. We have global benchmarks to chase.” To a question on health protection measures offered to employees, Mr Maheshwari said, “Our work force is well taken care of, with medical examination and preventive vaccination at regular intervals.” They were also covered under ESI, he added.

The company employs around 2,500 people. With the remuneration in the construction industry being better, he agreed that it was difficult to attract and retain employees in this industry. “We offer good quality training to our employees and improved working conditions, as a result of which we have seen a reduction in our attrition rate over the last 6 months.”

Rising awareness

With increasing awareness in the corporate sector towards waste management, he says there is a good demand for his company’s services in this area. However, the company is not in a hurry to take up the corporate orders.

“We are still concentrating on corporation areas under our operations and would look at partnering with corporates after consolidating our services with the corporation.”

Mr Maheshwari does not see a reduction in the volume of garbage handled in the near term.

“We are currently handling close to 1500 Mt /day but looking at the changing lifestyles, we feel it will increase by 5 to 10 per cent every year.”

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