Residents spend own money to keep Palam Vihar clean, say RWAs

Resident groups say they have been collecting contributions to fund garbage collection, sweeping and housekeeping services.

Residents of Palam Vihar have alleged that they are being forced to arrange and pay for basic sanitation services, including garbage collection, sweeping and housekeeping, citing what they described as a prolonged failure of civic authorities to maintain cleanliness in the township.

Resident groups say they have been collecting contributions to fund garbage collection, sweeping and housekeeping services. (HT)

Resident welfare associations (RWAs) said they have been collecting contributions from residents to ensure regular waste lifting and cleaning in parts of the colony, arguing that municipal services have remained inadequate despite repeated complaints.

According to residents, several internal roads, market areas, green belts and public spaces continue to face irregular garbage collection and poor sanitation. Overflowing waste collection points, littered public spaces and foul odour have become common in certain pockets, they said.

“We are paying taxes and municipal charges, yet residents are having to spend additional money to ensure basic cleanliness in their own neighbourhoods,” said Gagandeep Singh, RWA president of G block, Palam Vihar.

Singh said multiple representations had been submitted to civic authorities over the past several months, but little improvement had been seen. “The problem has been persistent since November 2024. In my block, we have to collect ₹65,000 a month from the residents to hire five sanitation workers and keep the area clean,” he said.

“Gurugram is the highest revenue generator in Haryana, yet it is the most neglected one. There are approximately 35,000-40,000 people in Palam Vihar alone. Even after repeated complaints, no authorities are willing to help us,” said Pankaj Rampal, president of H-block RWA.

Rajan Sagar, president of Palam Vihar Residents Association (PVRA), said sanitation staffing had reduced significantly. “Earlier, we used to have 10 sweepers and seven supervisors for each block. There are 13 blocks altogether. But now it is just seven people and one supervisor to cover five blocks. Each block has around 800 houses. It is humanly impossible for them to complete the cleaning. Therefore, we have to hire sanitation workers to keep the colonies clean personally,” he said.

Sagar said he had written to the MCG, the councillor and the joint commissioner and had also lodged a complaint on the CM window.

In response, MCG assistant sanitation inspector (ASI) Anuj denied receiving complaints regarding staff shortages. “I have not received any complaints regarding a lack of sanitation or workers in the area. We have ample staff,” he said, adding that no specific staff division data for Palam Vihar was available.