AMC spends ₹2 cr on toilet repairs across Ahmedabad, councillor raises concerns

A potential scam involving toilet repairs under the Amdavad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has once again become a topic of public debate. Over the past four years, AMC has paid more than ₹2 crore to private contractors for toilet maintenance and nuisance tankers. 

Allegations have emerged that payments were made multiple times for the same locations, with inflated bills, especially showing over ₹1 lakh spent on repairing a single toilet.

Contractors reportedly cited the same toilet sites repair repeatedly to claim separate payments. These allegations came to light during Friday’s municipal board meeting when Jamalpur ward councillor Rafiq Sheikh presented details of the scam under the Swachh Bharat Mission involving six wards in the Central Zone.

In Shahpur ward, ₹4.60 lakh was paid to the North Gujarat Lokseva Trust on June 28, 2024, for 115 toilets.

In Dariyapur ward, ₹18.64 lakh was paid for 466 toilets.

In Jamalpur ward, ₹34 lakh was paid for 850 toilets.

The councillor demanded photographic evidence and complete site-wise details of the toilets to justify the payments. He also called for legal action against responsible contractors and agencies.

In total, over ₹1.71 crore has been paid for the repair of 1,431 toilets, raising serious concerns. The councillor urged that a vigilance inquiry should be conducted.

Additionally, AMC paid ₹68 lakh to private contractors for nuisance tankers meant for cleaning public toilets up until January 31. However, these tankers reportedly were not dispatched regularly, casting further doubt on the legitimacy of such high expenses.