A French expat's complaint about the filth and uncleanliness in the northern Indian city of Gurugram has gone viral on social media, sparking debate about the lack of civic sense in the country. The woman, who claims to be living in India, said she has never seen this amount of filth in any other country that she has visited.
The woman was responding to a video showing the streets of Gurugram piled up with garbage, overflowing sewage and filth everywhere. She said she was 'horrified' by the state of the city, located in the immediate vicinity of the national capital, New Delhi.
"As a French expat living in #Gurgaon, I am horrified by the actual state of the city. I have never seen so much filth, trash, and broken roads in any other country I have visited," the woman named Mathilde wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
"Africa, Asia, and South America are 100 times cleaner. It is sad for Indians. And for India," she added.
After one of the citizens pointed out that the onus of cleaning the surroundings should not entirely lie with the government, Ms Mathilde responded: "It could be so much better. India has so much amazing people and culture. It is such a pity. I hope it will improve in the future. It could be a wonderful place to live in. But the wastes has to be taking care of."
As a french expact living in #gurgaon , i am horrified by the actual state of the city . I have never seen so much filth, trashes, and broken roads in any other country I have visited. Africa, Asia, south-America are 100 times cleaner. It is sad for indians. And for india. https://t.co/pTbeEP1lcX
— mathilde R. (@MathildeRa77404) July 4, 2025
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Social media reacts
As of the last update, the post had been viewed nearly four lakh times and received hundreds of comments, with the majority agreeing with the expat's assessment.
"It's a valid criticism and Indians don't deserve this. People and govt both should demand and fulfil their duties in building clean neighbourhoods," said one user while another added: "Mathilde, even we are horrified. As residents of Gurgaon, we go to the municipal offices, wait there for hours to meet officials, they assure us the work will get done, but NOTHING happens."
A third commented: "And Gurgaon is one of the most expensive cities in the country, wait till you visit 2nd and 3rd tier cities, Gurugram will feel like heaven from that standpoint."
