11 hours ago
Gurgaon civic body to hire 144 sanitation inspectors for better supervision
In a significant push to enhance sanitation services and streamline related grievance redress, the Gurugram Municipal Corporation will be recruiting 144 assistant sanitary inspectors (ASI). The plan, awaiting the Haryana government's approval, aims to decentralise sanitation operations by positioning these inspectors as key intermediaries between residents and senior civic officials, officials said.
Commissioner Pradeep Dahiya, leading the initiative, has opted for contractual hiring through Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam Limited, ruling out outsourcing to ensure direct oversight, a spokesperson said. The move is expected to cost the civic body approximately Rs 4.04 crore annually, with funds already allocated in the body's budget for the current fiscal.
The decision stems from a recent internal survey highlighting the need for at least four ASIs per ward across the city's 36 wards to effectively monitor sanitation and sewerage operations. Dahiya, addressing the issue during a review meeting of the Urban Local Bodies (ULB) Department on May 28, had underscored the shortcomings of the existing system, a spokesperson said.
Recruitments are expected to begin this month, with deployment of the ASIs over the next two months. Currently five sanctioned supervisors monitor the work of nearly 6,000 cleaning staff including sewer men.
The development comes more than a month after 60 of the Residents' Welfare Associations (RWAs) in Gurgaon resolved to take over sanitation duties from the municipal corporation.
The decision, which had received in-principle approval from the previous municipal commissioner Ashok Garg, was about to commence formally ahead of his recent transfer.
'We want the process to resume and finish. We have seen from our experience that the Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) is a complete failure when it comes to sanitation and any work that ends up getting done is by us RWAs only,' Ardee City RWA member Chaitali Mandhotra had said.
She had added that several times, when the civic body commits to deploying 25-odd sweepers in an area, only about 10 are actually hired and put to work. The RWAs have thus renewed their demand in this regard before the civic body and its current commissioner.
