Pune: PCMC Corporators Seek Probe into Moshi Waste-to-Biogas Tender, Allege Favour to Contractor

Pimpri Chinchwad, 6th August 2026: Opposition corporators in the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) on Wednesday alleged large-scale financial irregularities in the proposed 375-metric-tonne-per-day waste-to-biogas project at the Moshi garbage depot and demanded an independent probe into the tender process.

Addressing a press conference, corporators Sandeep Waghere and Sulabha Ubale, along with corporators Vikas Sane and Raju Bansode, opposed the tender floated by the civic body’s Environment Engineering Department for setting up the wet waste-to-biogas plant under the Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer (DBFOT) model.

The corporators claimed that although the project’s initial estimated cost was around Rs 180 crore, the revised tipping fee of Rs 3,611 per tonne would result in payments of around Rs 13.54 lakh per day, translating to over Rs 50 crore annually. Over the contract period of nearly 16 years and nine months, the total payout could exceed Rs 750 crore, they alleged.

They further claimed that, apart from the tipping fee, the contractor would also earn revenue from the sale of biogas generated by the plant, estimated at around Rs 6.3 lakh per day or Rs 22 crore annually. According to the corporators, the contractor would also receive viability gap funding (VGF) of Rs 37 crore, while the municipal corporation would not receive any revenue from the project.

The corporators alleged that the tender conditions were structured in a manner that would disproportionately benefit a specific private contractor at the expense of the civic body. They also questioned whether adequate safeguards had been incorporated to protect the municipal corporation’s financial interests, considering that the contractor would receive both tipping fees and income from the sale of biogas and organic manure produced by the plant.

They further alleged that government subsidies and financial assistance available for such projects would provide additional financial gains to the contractor, making it necessary to examine whether the agreement was in the civic body’s best interest.

The corporators demanded an independent inquiry into the tender process, financial calculations and contractual conditions by an expert committee before any final decision is taken. They alleged that the long-term nature of the contract could impose a significant financial burden on taxpayers in the future.

According to documents cited by the corporators, the PCMC administration has recommended accepting the revised bid of Rs 3,611 per tonne for the project, with a concession period of 16 years and nine months, and has proposed placing the matter before the standing committee for approval.

Waghere, Ubale and Sane demanded complete transparency in the tender process and urged the civic administration to ensure that no decision detrimental to the municipal corporation’s financial interests is taken.