Gurugram ‘aspirational toilet’ plan delayed despite ₹5.28cr sanction for 42 sites

Work has begun at just six locations; remaining sites to start after May June, officials say. Contract was awarded in Sept 2025 after initial bids failed to come in.

Despite the allocation of funds in December 2024 for 42 aspirational toilet sites across Gurugram, there has been little progress on the ground, raising concerns over delays in the rollout project.

Gurugram has 133 public toilets with ₹15 lakh yearly upkeep. MCG says revamp is on at 103 sites while studying models from other cities for better design and maintenance. (HT Archive)

Under the Swachh Bharat Mission, the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) sanctioned ₹5.28 crore for the construction of 229 “aspirational toilet” sites at 42 locations. These aspirational toilets are designed as modern, tech-enabled upgrades such as touchless taps, inclusive facilities for women, senior citizens, and people with disabilities as compared to conventional public facilities.

However, according to MCG officials, construction has so far begun at only six sites.

A senior MCG official said work at these six locations, which began in late November last year, is currently underway. “Once these are completed by May or June, we will begin work at the remaining locations,” he told HT.

The official added that most selected sites are high-footfall public areas such as bus stands and railway stations. When asked about the delay, he said several identified locations already have functional public toilets, and adjustments were required before new construction could start.

To be sure, the construction was scheduled to start in the first half of last year and the six toilets are to be completed by May-June this year.

The contract for the project was awarded to a single agency, Desh Raj Construction Pvt Ltd on September 2025. The agency did not respond to HT for a comment on the matter by the time of going to print.

Sundar Sheoran, executive engineer at MCG, said, “Tenders had been floated, and the process usually takes time. Initially, no agencies came forward to bid; however, the project was later taken up by Desh Raj Construction Pvt Ltd.”

According to officials, Gurugram currently has 133 public toilets, with around ₹15 lakh spent annually on their maintenance. On December 9, HT had reported that several public toilets in the city were in poor condition.

Rekha Srivastava, a Gurugram resident, said, “Most public toilets in the city are dirty, poorly maintained and often unusable. For women, the situation is worse. One can rarely find sanitary pads in vending machines, which makes it difficult to access basic hygiene products. It’s high time the authorities improve these facilities.”

MCG officials said revamp work is ongoing at 103 public toilets across the city as part of a broader overhaul of public and community sanitation infrastructure. The civic body has reached out to Kolkata, Puducherry, Surat and Indore to seek their requests for proposals (RFPs) in order to study structural designs and maintenance systems for regular toilets.

“Once we examine these RFPs, we will adopt suitable practices to improve our facilities,” a senior official said.