MCG House meeting: Estimates being prepared for civic services in eight private colonies

The Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) held its house meeting at John Hall in Civil Lines on Thursday. During the meeting, Mukesh Kumar Ahuja, commissioner, MCG, informed senior officials and councillors that the corporation is in the process of preparing estimates for delivering civic services in eight privately developed colonies which it took over in the last three months. The services include repairing and upgrading roads, drains, water lines, and streetlights.

Ahuja shared the information after Kuldeep Singh Bohra, councillor, ward 31, floated an agenda urging the corporation to start delivering civic amenities on a wider scale in Ardee City. “We took over the colony (Ardee City) in June this year. The delivery of civic amenities will be carried out for all eight colonies together and not individually. The estimates for the civic services will soon be prepared for all eight colonies,” Ahuja said.

According to MCG officials privy to the matter, a cumulative estimate of around ₹75 crore for eight privately developed plotted colonies – Ardee City, Malibu Towne, Uppal Housing, Vipul World, Greenwood City, Rosewood City, Sushant Lok 2, and Sushant Lok 3 – have been prepared by the corporation’s engineering wing. Tenders for the same will be floated by next month, and groundwork is expected to start in November.

Most of these colonies were developed in the early 2000s near key stretches such as the Golf Course Road Extension, Vikas Marg, and Sohna Road. Over time, the civic infrastructure could no longer sustain the continuously growing population in these colonies leading to deficiencies in services. Residents and Residents’ Welfare Associations (RWAs) requested the MCG to take over their colonies over the past decade, following which the civic body took charge of seven colonies on June 15 this year. Later, the corporation took over Greenwood City on August 28. Owing to difficulties in contacting developers of Greenwood City, the takeover was delayed by three months, officials said.

Ahuja also said that the civic body will shift all unregulated street vendors to their nearest vending zone and those found operating outside of it will be confiscated. Unregulated street vendors are a major issue in Gurugram, especially in connection with traffic congestion. Gurugram traffic police submitted a list of 14 stretches to the MCG last month, including key ones such as Vikas Marg, Sheetla Mata Road, and New Railway Road where encroachment by street vendors was leading to traffic snarls.

“Any street vendors outside the vending zone will be confiscated. Teams of 20 employees have been formed under the leadership of the deputy municipal commissioner and a police force has also been sought from the commissioner of Gurugram police for this task. MCG has plans for creating more vending zones for accommodating unregulated street vendors,” Ahuja added.

A street vending zone is usually set up on a vacant plot, or in available spaces near public markets. Vendors offer food and beverages at nominal rates to the public in these zones. Some of the vending zones also have mobile public toilets, drinking water supply, benches, streetlights, and garbage bins. MCG has 148 street vending zones where 1,700 vendors operate. The corporation announced in June that they have identified 132 new sites for setting up street vending zones where unregulated street vendors can be accommodated.

Other key agendas discussed in the meeting included the rehiring of a contractor who was allegedly blacklisted three times by the civic body in the past for poor delivery of services.

The agenda was floated by Rama Rathee, councillor, ward 34 who alleged that the contractor was hired by the civic body last year and the services provided by the contracted company were not up to the mark. The ward includes areas such as DLF Phase 1 and 2, part of DLF 5 and mall mile, Sector 28, and Sector 42. Ahuja directed additional commissioners to inspect the matter.

Anoop Singh, MCG councillor, ward 6, floated an agenda for renaming the Sukhrali pond after Sukhram Bhambhu, a resident who allegedly established both the village and pond in 1482. The house decided to present the matter before MCG’s naming and renaming committee for consideration.

Ashwani Sharma, MCG councillor, ward 23, proposed an agenda for the construction of an elevated road between Hero Honda Chowk and Umang Bhardwaj Chowk, citing heavy traffic congestion along the 2.2km stretch. The House rejected the proposal stating that the MCG has no jurisdiction over the matter as it comes under the purview of the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA), and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).