Gururgam RWAs flag lapses in sanitation

Responding to the complaints, MCG joint commissioner Akhilesh Kumar Yadav emphasised that the civic body focuses on maintaining cleanliness outcomes

Residents across Gurugram said they are grappling with a sanitation crisis, with several localities facing an acute shortage of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) sanitation staff, according to Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA) members, who said that the issue has now persisted for the last few weeks, leading to visible lapses in cleanliness across the city.

Illegally dumped garbage on a road in Sector 40, as seen in early April last year. (HT Archive)

In Sector 45, which houses around 15,000 residents, RWA members said that the sanitation workforce has dropped from 23 four weeks ago to just 8-9 workers from a private agency, despite three changes in staff over the past month — an insufficient number for the sector’s size, they alleged.

Puneet Pahwa, a Sector 45 RWA member, said, “We have been pushing the sanitation inspectors to come up with a concrete solution for this problem, but they haven’t provided a proper response. This is a long-standing issue across Gurugram.”

With garbage piling up and no contractor for waste disposal, residents have hired two extra workers, bearing the costs themselves.

Pahwa requested MCG to reimburse their expenses. “We request the MCG to reimburse the salaries of these two sanitation staff members hired by us,” he said.

Similar complaints have surfaced from Ardee City, a 200-acre area with only 10-16 sanitation workers.

According to RWA media coordinator Chaitali Mandhotra, the region suffered a complete absence of sanitation staff for a month last year. “The most unfortunate part is that these sanitation workers haven’t been coming on duty for the last three days.”

“Garbage piles and foul odours have become part of our daily lives,” she said.

South City-2 residents echoed these concerns.

Resident Khushboo Wadhwa described irregular sanitation services, noting that weeks often pass without proper cleaning. “The sanitation staff deployment in our area is highly irregular. At times, weeks go by without proper cleaning, leaving us to deal with garbage heaps and unbearable odours.”

She added, “We have approached the MCG several times, but the response has been inadequate. It feels like residents are left to fend for themselves.”

Responding to the complaints, MCG joint commissioner Akhilesh Kumar Yadav emphasised that the civic body focuses on maintaining cleanliness outcomes rather than tracking the number of deployed workers.

“I request the residents to not focus on the quantity of the sanitation workers but focus on whether cleanliness is maintained in the region. If there is any region that is struggling with garbage problems, then the residents can write directly to us and we will ensure that the work gets done,” Yadav said.