Gurgaon: MCG launched an inquiry into a payment of approximately Rs 10 lakh allocated to a residents' welfare association (RWA) for park maintenance in Sector 4.
The investigation started following a grievance lodged by Urban Estate RWA (UERWA), which asserted responsibility for maintaining Sector 4 parks. UERWA disclosed that while the association received maintenance charges for March in Sept 2024, they discovered that subsequent payments from April 2024 to July 2024 were directed to an RWA in ward 15.
This discrepancy prompted their complaint to the authorities. An MCG official noted that the ward 15 RWA, linked with a former councillor, has also staked a claim to maintain the Sector 4 parks.
In response to this conflicting situation, the corporation has requested maintenance payment records from the horticulture department and begun an investigation.
"I have sought records on the payments already made to one RWA. We will check the claims made by both the RWAs and carry out a thorough investigation," said MCG joint commissioner Pardeep Kumar.
UERWA members stated that they had maintained around 14 parks in Sector 4 for the last two years and regularly received maintenance charges from the corporation.
"After UERWA's term ended in March, the association formed an ad-hoc committee, which raised the bills for park maintenance from April to Sept this year. When I assumed the charge of UERWA president this Sept, we found that the gardeners and other staff maintaining the parks had not been paid since April. Upon inquiring, I found the payment was made to ward 15 RWA. I submitted a complaint, and MCG has initiated a probe," said UERWA president Manoj Bhardwaj.
RWAs maintain around 90% of the 1,100 parks under MCG's jurisdiction. The civic body pays these associations Rs 4.2 per square metre.
For the 2024-25 fiscal year, the MCG has allocated Rs 15 crore for the repair and maintenance of parks in the city. However, RWAs have reported not receiving park maintenance charges on time, which has caused delays in payments to gardeners and other staff involved in the upkeep of parks.
Regarding this, MCG officials said that the bills are cleared by the horticulture department, however, they get stuck in the accounts department for scrutiny.