E-Paper
Mohali MC turns to face recognition attendance system to rein in absence
Some employees were manipulating the manual system and skipping work without authorisation, affecting the civic body’s functioning and public dealing, said the Mohali mayor
Working to curb unauthorised absence at the municipal corporation office, the civic body’s finance and contract committee on Wednesday gave the nod for a face-recognition attendance system for employees.
Around 1,000 employees, including officials, function from the five-storey office in Sector 68 that receives a footfall of over 1,000 visitors daily.
“So far, attendance was being recorded through registers. But it was found that some employees were manipulating this system and skipping work without authorisation, affecting the civic body’s functioning and public dealing. MC will now use biometric face-reading attendance machines to tackle this effectively,” said mayor Amarjit Singh Sidhu, who chaired the meeting.
The automated biometric face recognition system, through a digital camera and analysis software, will measure an employee’s facial and physical characteristics for identification and mark attendance.
₹10 lakh insurance cover for contractual workers also
In another decision, the panel also decided to provide a ₹10-lakh insurance cover to all contractual firemen, sanitation workers and sewermen, a benefit so far only provided to permanent employees.
During the meeting, work orders of old and new projects worth ₹26 crore were also approved.
The development works include maintenance of parks and house number plates in different wards, and renovation of the community centres in Phases 1 and 11, besides construction of a slip road along the old Amartex Chowk, cow shed’s boundary wall and toilet in the Sector 79 market.
Apart from this, the work of completing the causeway along the Phase 5 gurdwara was also approved.
Senior deputy mayor Amrik Singh Somal, deputy mayor Kuljit Singh Bedi, commissioner Navjot Kaur, joint commissioner Damandeep Kaur, superintending engineer Naresh Batta, councillors Jasbir Singh Manku and Anuradha Anand, and several MC officials also attended the meeting.
