LWMC springs to action after CM's nudge

Daily garbage collection increases after CM's deadline

LAHORE:

The provincial capital's sanitation system is facing challenges due to lack of experienced teams and inadequate monitoring, as complaints about cleanliness in the markets, streets and roads are increasing despite the allocation of an annual budget of Rs17 billion.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has given the Lahore Waste Management Company a three-day deadline to clean the city.

In response, CEO Babar Sahib Din has deployed a 'quick response squad'' for cleaning markets and roads and prioritised manual cleaning alongside machinery.

The LWMC is responsible for ensuring the city's cleanliness and transporting collected waste to dumping points. However, its performance has been subpar lately, despite having thousands of sanitation workers, 200 machines and a Rs17 billion annual budget. The city is divided into nine towns with 5,500 to 6,000 tonnes of waste generated daily.

The CEO, who had been appreciated for the organisation's work on Eidul Azha, is now preoccupied with meetings for outsourcing and other projects at the provincial level.

The deputy CEO operations is undergoing training, while the GM and senior manager lack adequate relevant experience.

According to sources, lack of focus on addressing public grievances had resulted in escalating complaints about the service.

The sources said the company's performance had deteriorated due to political interference. Recently, sanitation workers were transferred at the town level for the first time, causing disruption of work.

The officials focus on cleaning the roads used by VIPs, important locations and the main thoroughfares, neglecting residential areas.

Mechanical sweeping is used to clean the roads, but manual cleaning with brooms has almost ceased. As a result, the footpaths, roads and streets are filled with dirt and dust.

Previously, sanitation workers used brooms to clean roads and footpaths.

The LWMC has over 10,000 employees assigned for manual cleaning, but their performance is unsatisfactory. Supervisors, managers and monitoring teams are responsible for overseeing their work.

The sources said there had been allegations of bribery for neglecting absence from duty of employees.

Following public complaints, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif directed the LWMC to clean the city within three days.

Following the order, CEO Babar Sahib Din formed the quick response squad and deputed officials for monitoring the sanitation work. He warned that the employees who fail to perform their duty would be terminated.

He said the LWMC was striving to improve its daily operations.

After the chief minister set the deadline, the commissioner and deputy commissioner of Lahore, and CEO of the LWMC have started inspection tours across the city.

As a result, within two days, an additional 500 to 700 tonnes of waste is being collected from the city daily.

In October, the city had witnessed on average the removal of around 4,500 tonnes of garbage daily. However, in the last two days, about 5,200 tonnes of trash was removed, which had previously been left in the streets.