Mumbai: Housekeeping and sanitation services at Dr. R. N. Cooper Municipal General Hospital and Hinduhridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Medical College were severely affected after workers of the outsourced housekeeping agency stopped work and went on strike, leaving hospital premises littered with garbage and overflowing bins till Friday evening.
BMC discontinues M/s KHFM Hospitality services from May 8
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has discontinued the services of M/s K.H.F.M. Hospitality and Facility Management Services Pvt. Ltd. with effect from May 8, 2026. The agency had been providing housekeeping and sanitation services at the hospital under an outsourced contract.
For the past few days, contractual workers employed by KHFM had reportedly been on strike, disrupting cleaning operations across several sections of the hospital. The situation led to overflowing garbage bins and unhygienic conditions, triggering concerns among patients, relatives and hospital staff over sanitation and infection risks. The workers alleged that they had not received salaries for the past couple of months from the contractor.
Alternate agency arranged; officials fear opposition from strikers
According to hospital authorities, the administration was forced to make alternate arrangements through another agency to ensure that essential cleaning services continued without interruption. However, officials also feared that the striking workers could oppose the move, potentially leading to untoward incidents within the hospital premises.
In an official communication, Dean Dr. Chhaya Shinde requested police protection and bandobast from the morning of May 8 onwards, citing apprehensions of law and order issues due to the agitation by the contract workers.
The episode has also raised questions over the extension granted earlier to KHFM despite its previous record of similar labour-related disruptions and sanitation issues. The agency had originally been awarded the cleaning contract under a circular issued on December 13, 2022, covering more than 3.78 lakh square feet across the hospital facilities. The contract was valid till December 12, 2025, and was later extended till March 31, 2026 by the Director of Medical Education and Major Hospitals.
According to official correspondence, the contractor continued providing services even after March 31 based on verbal instructions, as maintaining daily hospital sanitation was considered essential.
However, during a meeting held on May 4, 2026, in the chamber of the Deputy Commissioner (General Administration), attended by senior medical education officials, verbal instructions were issued to terminate the agency’s services with effect from May 8.
The notice further stated that post-facto approval would be obtained for the services rendered between April 1 and May 7, 2026, and payment for that period would be released accordingly.
When contacted by The Free Press Journal, Dean Dr. Chhaya Shinde replied through a message stating, “KHFM is not there. We got workers and the hospital will be cleaned.”
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