Gurugram: Senior sanitary inspector fined for failing to clear waste

A senior sanitary inspector (SSI) of the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) has been fined by the Haryana Right to Service Commission for failing to clear waste in Sector 12-A area despite being served a suo moto notice by the commission last month and for giving unsatisfactory response in the matter, said a release that the district administration came out with on Friday.

It is for the first time that the commission has taken any action against an MCG official. Last week, the SSI, Rishi Malik, was appointed as MCG’s nodal officer for biomedical waste collection.

The matter pertains to a complaint raised by a resident of Sector 12-A area, regarding the failure of the MCG in collecting waste from streets and roads in his area.

The SSI and a sub-divisional officer (SDO) of the MCG both appeared before the commission via video conference on Tuesday. Both the officials were served a suo moto notice by the commission on December 13 last year. The SDO was issued a notice for a matter pertaining to the flow of drain water in Sector 12-A area and his statement was accepted during the hearing.

According to the order shared by T C Gupta, the chief commissioner of Haryana Right to Service Commission, the SSI said that Gurugram district is divided into six sanitation zones and that Sector 12-A falls under zone two, which was under his supervision at the time of the complaint and that he has 1,600-1,700 sweepers at his disposal. Municipal commissioner Mukesh Kumar Ahuja also submitted a reply in the matter before the commission for perusal.

“The reply given by the SSI is unsatisfactory in view of the fact that there is clear cut demarcation of district Gurugram into zones for sanitation purpose and a fleet of 1,600-1,700 sweepers and also many supervisors...to manage the sweepers have been placed at this disposal. The MCG commissioner has indirectly admitted in his reply that the area was dirty and there was a lot of garbage that had not been lifted or cleaned, and the same was done only after the intervention of the Haryana Right to Service Commission,” said the order.

The order further states that the photographs sent by the MCG commissioner clearly proved that the area was not cleaned before the intervention of the commission.

“It is evident that he (the SSI) has failed to deliver this notified service within the stipulated timeline by not cleaning the area, including green belts for many days. He had adequate resources at his command and it is painful that he has not utilized these sweepers, supervisory officers, ASIs (assistant sanitary inspectors) and SIs (sanitary inspectors) allotted to him prudently and efficiently,” said Gupta’s order.

The commission ordered the senior sanitary inspector to deposit a fine of ₹20,000 in the state treasury within 30 days of issuance of these orders. If the amount is not deposited within the given time, further action will be taken by the commission as per law.

Malik declined to comment on the matter.

“The area in Sector 12-A has been cleaned and the latest photographs of the area has been submitted before the commission for perusal. The SSI is in the process of submitting the fine amount,” said a senior MCG official in the sanitation wing of the civic body.

The commission further found the SSI and the SDO to be “ignorant and lacking sensitization” for being unaware of the services pertaining to MCG notified under Haryana Right to Service Commission and timelines thereof. They directed the MCG commissioner to organize training, either online or through video conference, keeping in mind Covid-19 restrictions, regarding the commission’s services for all MCG employees within 30 days of issuance of these orders and report compliance on it.