Chennai Local News

Chennai Toilet Scam: How The DMK-Run GCC Siphoned ₹430 Crore Taxpayer Money

February 27, 2025
The Commune

Under the leadership of the DMK, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has been systematically siphoning off taxpayer money through a massive scam involving a toilet maintenance contract, exploiting a tender process conveniently swept under the rug.

A case in the Royapuram zone serves as a prime example of how the system has been exploited. Between January 2022 and April 2023, GCC managed 1,431 toilet seats at a cost of ₹16.62 lakh, averaging ₹3.18 per seat per day. Despite this seemingly low cost, the toilets were in poor condition—filthy and unusable.

Then, from February to August 2023, GCC privatized the maintenance of 2,519 public toilet seats, including e-toilets and booth toilets, in the same area. The cost per seat jumped to ₹78 per day, a 24.5-fold increase, with the total tender amounting to ₹3.58 crore.

As if this wasn’t alarming enough, the maintenance cost for each toilet seat in Royapuram, Thiru Vi Ka Nagar, and Marina Beach was raised to ₹363.9 per day, a staggering 115 times the previous amount when GCC managed the toilets directly. The total cost of the project reached an astonishing ₹430 crore over eight years, which also included ₹82 crore allocated for building 662 new toilet seats. The tender was prepared in September 2022, and the contractor, DRRSB Infra, was given the go-ahead in February 2023. GCC is now planning to expand this contract citywide, with a projected cost of ₹1,167 crore.

In just eight months, the maintenance cost per toilet seat soared from ₹3.18 to ₹363.9. For context, commercial establishments like Slam Fitness, Naturalz, Vummudi Bangaru Jewellers, and Tony and Guy spend no more than ₹100 per day per toilet seat.

Despite the hefty budget, the toilets remain in poor condition, dirty, and often unusable. GCC has issued several show-cause notices but has not taken strong action against the contractor. According to RTI responses obtained by TOI, the first notice, sent on 27 October 2023, highlighted the contractor’s failure to meet project milestones, leaving toilets with broken tiles and inadequate sanitation. A second notice on 22 December 2023, pointed to the use of substandard construction materials and a lack of cleaning staff. By 2 January 2024, the zonal officer reported that the contractor had failed to supply the necessary cleaning equipment at Marina Beach, and had not addressed the issues despite repeated warnings.

On 8 February 2024, GCC issued a pre-termination notice, citing poor work execution, failure to meet performance targets, and non-compliance with meetings. An RTI response in January 2025 revealed that the contractor had installed only 37 CCTV cameras, far short of the 372 required, making it impossible to monitor staff performance effectively. Despite these violations, GCC has already paid the contractor ₹24 crore.

Experts in the industry argue that ₹364 per seat per day is an exorbitant cost. Sharshad Baniyandi, the founder-director of Penda Private Limited, which manages housekeeping for events at Chepauk Stadium, says even at the highest standards, toilet maintenance should cost no more than ₹100 per seat daily. This includes labor (₹86 per seat) and chemicals (₹20), with e-toilets costing around ₹150. Water is typically free from tanks.

RSB Infra, the contractor, was supposed to construct 662 new toilet seats in the first year for ₹82 crore, including GST. The remaining budget was allocated for maintenance over the eight-year period. However, the contractor has failed to meet essential requirements like installing CCTV cameras, ensuring cleanliness, and providing necessary labor and cleaning supplies. Despite these breaches, GCC has not taken any significant action.

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