One Year, 5,000+ Manholes cleaned, Zero Manual Scavenging: A Year of Smart Sanitation
Mumbai / May 20, 2025
Mumbai, May 20: Barely a year after the introduction of advanced robotic scavenger Bandicoot Mobility+ in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (formerly Aurangabad), the city has overhauled its underground sanitation infrastructure by cleaning more than 5,000 manholes—including chambers as deep as 12 meters—across multiple city zones.
Developed by national startup-award winner Genrobotic Innovations Pvt. Ltd., the Bandicoot Mobility+ robot has also ensured zero manual scavenging—a practice that is both obnoxious and life-threatening—while significantly improving operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
Equipped with an advanced robotic arm that reaches every corner and an automated waste-collection and storage system, these robots enable safe, hygienic cleaning with zero human entry. This transformation has been critical in addressing overflowing drains caused by massive faecal and other solid waste dumping. Previously reliant on basic desilting machines lacking cameras, display screens, real-time visuals and precision tools, the Municipal Corporation in the city had to grapple with frequent blockages.
In mid-2024, the city deployed two Bandicoot Mobility+ units, each now clearing 10–12 sewage chambers daily. It has not only prevented overflows and waterlogging but also extended the lifespan of the sewer network, thus building a safer, smarter, and more humane sanitation ecosystem.
The vehicular Bandicoot has been a massive cost-saver—reducing expenses by Rs 2–3 crores annually, which would otherwise go toward digging open main lines and jetting clogged sewer lines.
Implementation in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar was initiated after the then Chief Minister, Shri Eknath Shinde, who made an open endorsement of robotic technology. “The Bandicoot robotic technology, inaugurated in Ulhasnagar, can save the lives of sanitation workers who enter manholes to clean them. Every municipal corporation in Maharashtra must implement this, and the government will support all of them in doing so, because it is the responsibility of the government that no one dies in manholes anymore.”
Recognizing these achievements, the Municipal Corporation has officially recommended Genrobotic Innovations Pvt. Ltd. for its transformative sanitation technology and its positive impact on infrastructure, sanitation workers’ safety, and public health.
