Nagpur: In a major push towards mechanised sanitation and improved urban cleanliness, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has expanded its machinery fleet with the addition of 12 road-sweeping machines and four chain crawler excavators, taking up a combined investment of Rs 7.09 crore to strengthen cleaning operations across the city.
Mayor Neeta Thakre inaugurated the newly procured machinery at the NMC’s Central Workshop on Friday, marking a significant expansion of the civic body’s mechanised cleaning infrastructure. With the induction of 12 additional road sweepers, the corporation’s existing fleet of such machines has doubled, paving the way for more systematic cleaning of major roads, flyovers and other stretches.
The new deployment strategy is aimed at improving sanitation coverage across all 10 municipal zones while ensuring that important roads and high-traffic stretches receive focused attention.
One sweeper for each of 10 zones
Deputy Commissioner Rajesh Bhagat said that 10 of the newly acquired road-sweeping machines would be allotted to the respective zonal offices, ensuring that every zone has dedicated mechanised cleaning equipment.
The remaining two machines will be operated by a central team, which will concentrate primarily on sweeping flyovers and other major roads requiring specialised and regular cleaning.
The 12 machines have been procured at a total cost of Rs 5.58 crore under the Centre and Maharashtra Government’s Swachh Maharashtra Mission 2.0. Each machine has cost Rs 46.50 lakh and possesses a waste-collection capacity of three cubic metres.
Manufactured by Baxy Ltd on a Tata Motors chassis, the machines are designed to mechanically remove accumulated dust, soil and garbage from road surfaces. Their deployment is expected to reduce dependence on conventional manual sweeping and improve the efficiency and frequency of road-cleaning operations.
Four Poclain machines to tackle silt in rivers and drains
In another significant addition, the NMC has procured four chain crawler excavators, popularly known as Poclain machines, at a cost of Rs 1.51 crore under the Nagpur District Planning Committee’s annual plan for 2025-26.
Each excavator has a capacity of five tonnes and a bucket capacity of 0.22 cubic metres. Unlike conventional earth-moving equipment, these machines are intended to operate in difficult and restricted locations, particularly narrow stretches of rivers and drains and areas beneath bridges.
The equipment will be deployed to remove accumulated silt, garbage and other obstructions from water channels where conventional machinery often encounters operational difficulties.
The move is expected to strengthen the NMC’s efforts to maintain river and drain channels, besides improving access to difficult stretches that frequently remain challenging for routine cleaning operations.
Inaugurating the machinery, Mayor Neeta Thakre emphasised the need to make effective use of modern technology to improve sanitation services and maintain cleanliness across Nagpur.
She directed the civic administration to ensure that personnel operating the newly procured equipment receive proper training so that the machines are utilised efficiently and their operational capabilities are fully exploited.
The expanded fleet is expected to give the NMC greater mechanised capacity for road sweeping, river cleaning and drain desilting. However, its effectiveness will ultimately depend on regular deployment, proper maintenance and sustained monitoring of cleaning operations across all municipal zones.
