The long-awaited door-to-door waste collection project in Gurgaon has encountered yet another delay. On Tuesday, the Haryana government's high-powered purchase committee, chaired by Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, declined to approve the rates submitted by participating agencies and directed that the project be retendered.
Project Overview and Cost Concerns
The project, estimated to cost Rs 606 crore, aims to establish a comprehensive waste collection system for an initial five-year period, with a possible two-year extension based on performance. However, committee members expressed concerns over the rates quoted by the two shortlisted agencies, which were around Rs 4,000 per tonne.
Officials argued that these rates were significantly higher than those in other cities and states. Comparisons were drawn with contracts in Delhi, Mumbai, Gujarat, and several Haryana cities. The committee reportedly proposed a rate of Rs 3,000 per tonne, but the agencies—based in Delhi and Maharashtra—were unwilling to reduce their bids below Rs 3,750 per tonne. Officials pointed out that similar services in Delhi cost between Rs 2,200 and Rs 2,400 per tonne. In response, the agencies cited Gurgaon-specific challenges, including the absence of a dedicated waste collection system for an extended period and the large geographical area to be serviced.
Official Statement and Impact
MCG Commissioner Pardeep Dahiya confirmed the retender, stating, “There will be a retender as the quoted rates were high.” This decision means residents will have to wait longer for a streamlined waste collection system, even as complaints about sanitation and garbage accumulation persist across the city.
Ward 11 Councillor Kuldeep Yadav emphasized the urgent need for dedicated agencies to manage doorstep waste collection. “Much of the waste seen on roads and in public spaces is a direct consequence of the lack of efficient doorstep collection. If the system is streamlined, nearly 60% of this waste could disappear,” Yadav said.
Resident Frustration and Criticism
Bhawani Shankar Tripathy, a resident of Sector 23A, criticized the prolonged delays. “It is unfortunate that an urban local body in Haryana has not yet been able to develop an effective tendering mechanism for doorstep waste collection in Gurgaon,” he said. He noted that clear guidelines and policy frameworks exist under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and the Swachh Bharat Mission, yet the city continues to face delays in streamlining a basic civic service. He added that MCG should have devised alternative strategies instead of waiting for repeated approvals from the state government.
“The mayor and the commissioner have sufficient powers to introduce city-level measures to improve waste collection. Door-to-door collection and sanitation management should be decentralized and entrusted to ward councillors and ward committees, with adequate logistical support from the corporation,” Tripathy added.
Background of Waste Management Crisis
Gurgaon's waste management system has been in disarray since June 2024, when MCG terminated its contract with Ecogreen Energy over alleged poor performance. Since then, the civic body has relied on temporary arrangements and short-term contracts, while residents have repeatedly reported irregular garbage collection and deteriorating sanitation conditions. The urban local bodies department has revised the request for proposal multiple times over the past two years as authorities struggled to finalize a long-term waste collection model. TOI had earlier reported on repeated revisions to the tender framework.
