PMC Caps Road Sweeping Contracts at Two Per Contractor to End Monopoly in Pune

Pune, 27th May 2026: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has decided to cap the allocation of road sweeping contracts at a maximum of two per contractor in a move aimed at curbing monopoly and improving transparency in the tender process.

The decision follows allegations that a small group of contractors had been repeatedly securing multiple sweeping contracts through the existing lottery-based tender system, leading to weak monitoring and poor sanitation standards in several parts of the city.

PMC floats multi-crore tenders every year for road sweeping work across its 15 regional ward offices. These contracts, which include the supply of manpower for street cleaning, range from approximately Rs 4 crore to Rs 30 crore, depending on the size and jurisdiction of the ward office.

Since minimum wages for sanitation workers are fixed by the government, contractors often quote similar rates during the bidding process. In such situations, PMC currently uses a lottery system to finalise the contractor for each ward office.

However, civic officials acknowledged that the system has resulted in a concentration of contracts among a few contractors. At present, two contractors reportedly hold sweeping contracts for eight regional ward offices — four each — covering more than half of Pune city.

Despite these large-scale allocations, several areas in the city continue to face sanitation and cleanliness issues. Concerns have also been raised over allegations that some contractors were receiving payments despite unsatisfactory work on the ground.

Following criticism over the functioning of the tender process, PMC has now decided that no contractor will be allowed to secure more than two sweeping contracts at a time.

PMC Additional Commissioner Prajit Nair said the decision was taken to break the monopoly in sweeping contracts and ensure better implementation of sanitation work.
“We have decided that a single contractor will not be awarded more than two tenders. This will help prevent monopoly and improve transparency and monitoring of sanitation work,” Nair said.