Gurugram MC asks residents to share ideas to tackle civic woes

Facing criticism from residents over civic issues such as poor sanitation and waterlogging, the Gurugram Municipal Corporation (MC) has decided to involve citizens in finding solutions. The civic body has invited residents to share innovative ideas to tackle urban challenges.

“The MC invites innovative, scalable and technology-driven ideas from individuals, start-ups, companies, academic institutions and civil society organisations to address pressing urban challenges and improve service delivery and citizen engagement across the city. This initiative is part of MC’s commitment to smart, sustainable and citizen-centric urban development,” the corporation said in a notice.

Proposals can be submitted under eight themes: sanitation monitoring; construction and demolition waste processing; stray animal management; utilities monitoring and management for drinking water, sewerage and stormwater; air quality management; digital infrastructure and smart city technology; waste processing and management; and a unified mobile application for MC services.

Applicants must send an Expression of Interest (EoI) with their profile and proposed solution by August 16 to itmanager@mcg.gov.in.

MC Commissioner Pradeep Dahiya said this was an attempt to make the city’s urban development a community-driven effort.

“Gurugram residents are not just vocal about civic crises, but over time we have come across a plethora of commendable ideas. With this effort, we are trying to make urban development of the city community-driven and increase public participation. This will encourage collaborative governance by tapping into expertise from diverse sectors. Solutions that combine smart technology with citizen participation can create lasting change,” said Dahiya.

The civic body hopes the initiative will set a precedent for future public–private problem-solving efforts. The move has been welcomed by residents and RWAs.

“This is a welcome initiative. It is the people living in a particular area who know best about the reasons and impact of a particular problem. RWAs are already managing civic issues in their areas and now this will give a wider scope for development,” said Praveen Yadav, president of United Gurugram RWAs.

Urban Local Bodies Minister Vipul Goel also welcomed the move.

He stated, "We are open to feedback and criticism. While people in the city make a beeline to ridicule Gurugram on social media, only a handful come forward with solutions. This is the time to be part of the solution. We are listening - tell us how things can be better. Let your expertise and ideas be of some benefit to the city. We wish to take Gurugram further with citizen involvement, and this is unprecedented."