Hired To Clean Streets, Made To Serve Bungalows: Pune Sweeper Scam Puts PMC Under Fire

The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has come under heavy criticism, as large-scale corruption has come to light in the hiring and management of contract sweepers. Reportedly, 500 workers hired by the civic body to clean city roads are being used as personal servants by political leaders and senior officials.

Social activist Vijay Kumbhar alleged, “Over 500 workers hired for city cleaning are being used as personal servants by political leaders and senior officials! Instead of cleaning Pune’s streets, they’re cleaning private bungalows, all while being paid with public money. Expose the names. Stop this loot. Recover every rupee from these freeloading frauds.”

Netizens took the matter to social media. A user wrote, “This is a national disease. Even a government school headmaster uses his teachers to do his household work — driving him to work, buying rations... Police are working like security men in bungalows. This nation will be like this only.”

According to sources, the work of sweeping is assigned from each ward office. However, the task is left undone, yet they receive their salaries. In some cases, they receive partial salaries, while the rest is taken by the supervisor.

As per sources, these actions are purportedly encouraged by assistant commissioners and senior health inspectors. Employees who voice their concerns face months of unemployment or termination.

Speaking on the matter, a senior PMC official on the condition of anonymity said, “This has already been escalated to higher-ups based on the complaints by a few RTI activists, and the higher-ups have asked all ward offices to give a detailed report on how many sanitary workers are deployed in which area, and all the information regarding the structure and their operations.”

Prithviraj BP, Additional Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, said, “It is wrong to have such practices. This type of thing had not come to our notice. But we will look into this and take action."