MCG plans app-based system for Gurugram streetlights

Around 25,000 lights in colonies, villages and older residential areas will be integrated in the first phase under a SCADA-based setup.

The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) is set to introduce a mobile app-based system to operate and monitor street lights across Gurugram, officials said, in a move aimed at improving maintenance efficiency and strengthening smart city infrastructure.

(Representative image) The civic body plans to gradually bring a majority of the city’s 125,000 streetlights under a centralised monitoring network. (HT Archive)

Under the plan, nearly 25,000 street lights installed across colonies, old residential areas and villages, particularly those mounted on walls, rooftops or electricity poles, will be integrated with an app-controlled system in the first phase.

Currently, faulty street lights often remain non-functional for days due to delays in identifying and repairing faults. Officials said the new system will install control panels connected directly to a mobile application, allowing authorities to remotely switch lights on or off and monitor their functioning in real time.

The system will also include an alert mechanism under which automatic notifications will be sent to concerned officials if a street light malfunctions or fails to turn on, enabling quicker repairs. Municipal officials said the centralised system will allow street lights in an entire sector or colony to be controlled simultaneously.

While some streetlights in Gurugram, especially in newer sectors and highways, operate through timers or light sensors, many in older colonies and villages still rely on manual or semi-manual systems, officials said.

“To operate street lights in a modern and efficient manner, control panels and app-based systems will be installed. The lights connected to these panels will be managed through a mobile app, for which a detailed plan has been prepared,” said Vijay Dhaka, chief engineer, MCG.

Officials said Gurugram currently has around 125,000 street lights, and the civic body plans to gradually integrate a majority of them under a SCADA-based (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) centralised monitoring system. Around 50% of the lights will be integrated in the first phase, followed by expansion to the remaining areas. The proposed app-based SCADA system aims to centralise monitoring through real-time tracking, remote operation and automatic fault alerts, officials added.