The existing infrastructure of street lights on Gurugram's roads has not undergone any major inspection or maintenance for over a decade, posing a safety hazard and leading to fatal accidents in the city.
Officials of the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) said that due to lack of repair and replacement, about 80% of the street lights in the city are in poor condition, with broken panels, exposed wires and rusted poles that threaten public safety. are a threat to said on Monday.
A spot check conducted by the HT on Sunday within a 15-km radius of the city revealed hazardous conditions on major roads in several areas, including Shivaji Nagar, Madanpuri, Pataudi Road, More Chowk, Civil Lines, Rd. City, Malibu Town, Sector-10 included. and Sector 9A. Many poles in these areas have been standing for 20 to 25 years without any upgrades, causing structural weakness, and thus posing a safety hazard.
MCG Commissioner Narhari Singh Bangar said that they have floated at least 10 tenders for replacing street light poles and panels. “Some non-functioning street lights are being replaced. Officials have been given a deadline to ensure that the remaining lights are functional. Keeping public safety in mind, I also urged the authorities to prevent accidents. Street lights are very important, especially in winter when visibility is reduced due to fog,” he said.
Last year, Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) terminated its contract with MCG for the street light project due to non-payment of dues. EESL said that MCG is due. ₹200,000,000 with an additional late payment penalty ₹100,000,000 by July 31. EESL has installed 82,000 LED street lights and 800 central control and monitoring systems in Gurugram, maintaining over 98 percent uptime despite payment defaults.
However, MCG officials said they tried to raise concerns about the project with EESL and resolve it, but could not reach a consensus.
Accidents due to poor maintenance
In 2017, the MCG outsourced a private agency to replace 80,000 street lights across the city at an estimated cost. ₹100 crore, however, the contract did not cover the replacement of old poles and wiring, which are mostly untouched. This oversight has already led to tragic results, with three deaths reported due to electrocution from exposed wires on street light poles.
To compound the problem, MCG's recent efforts to address the issue have been plagued by incompetence and oversight. In November 2023, two private agencies were awarded the contract to repair the streetlights, but these agencies accepted the tender at a 40% loss, causing the work to be sub-contracted. Instead of replacing damaged wires or panel boxes, agencies simply made temporary fixes, often ignoring the root causes of the malfunction.
Lack of oversight and accountability
According to the regulations, annual inspection of street lights along city roads and lanes should be done by Junior Engineers (JEs) and Sub-Divisional Officers (SDOs). These officials are responsible for identifying and rectifying problems, issuing notices to agencies in case of negligence and imposing fines when necessary. However, investigations have shown that such inspections are not carried out consistently, leading to a lack of accountability and persistent risks.
Malibu Town RWA Floors President Vijay Shivanath said many street lights in the community are not working due to faulty cable work or fused lights.
“With a settlement spread over 204 acres, it is a tough task for the RWA to keep them in order. It has been nearly 10 months since the last street light repair contract in our area was awarded by the MCG. The cables All street lights are being taken care of by us, including repair and replacement of lights That it will happen soon,'' he said.
“All street lights in the city that are more than 20 years old will be replaced. Periodic inspections are carried out to ensure safety, and any negligence results in notices and fines to responsible agencies. We have already floated tenders for areas like Sector 30-31, Ardee City and Malibu Town,” said Parveen Dalal, Executive Engineer, MCG.
Financial, structural challenges ahead
The cost is expected to be between upgrading Gurugram's street light infrastructure. ₹12 crores and ₹15 crores. The city currently has over 80,000 street lights under the jurisdiction of the MCG, covering 100 km of roadways. Despite the availability of funds, the challenge is to ensure that the necessary audits and upgrades are carried out effectively and without further delay.