The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’s standing committee has approved a proposal worth about ₹5 crore to obtain the services of 180 peons from three agencies before completing a fresh tender process, raising questions about procurement compliance and accountability in civic administration.
Under the approved arrangement, each of the three agencies will provide 60 peons to the corporation through outsourcing. The proposal cites a shortage of peons across various AMC departments as the reason for proceeding with the interim arrangement. A tender process is expected to be undertaken within three months.
The proposal also provides for obtaining services from the identified agencies without requiring them to complete some of the usual contractual formalities, including submitting an agreement and depositing security. The decision has therefore drawn attention to how the corporation is managing outsourced services while a regular tender is pending.
According to the report, nine of the 60 workers supplied by each agency will be assigned to the secretary’s office. The remaining 51 workers from each agency will be allocated to other AMC departments. The concerned departments will issue work orders and make payments for the services.
The latest arrangement follows proposals approved at a meeting of the Health and Solid Waste Management Committee on August 22, 2025, for outsourcing peons. The current decision has reportedly been advanced on the basis of the earlier resolution. Previous proposals referred to the cost of engaging 164 peons and to the expense of retaining 288 peons for two years.
The figures cited in those proposals indicate an annual cost of approximately ₹2.77 lakh per peon, or about ₹23,150 a month. However, the report says the corporation has not clarified how much of this amount would be paid as wages to the workers and how much would be retained by the outsourcing agencies. Discussions have suggested that peons may receive between ₹12,000 and ₹15,000 a month, but the report notes that no conclusion can be reached without official details on the payment structure.
The decision also brings renewed attention to the way AMC handles the transition between outsourcing contracts. The report refers to earlier allegations that existing agencies continue providing services until new tenders are approved, even after a contract period ends. This creates questions about whether tender processes are completed on time, who is responsible for delays and how interim work is allocated.
The immediate arrangement is intended to address staffing shortages across AMC offices and departments. The next stated milestone is the completion of a tender process within three months, after which the corporation’s regular outsourcing arrangement is expected to be determined.
