Outsourced sanitation and waste management services under the Suthra Punjab [Clean Punjab] programme have failed to deliver in Faisalabad, causing public outrage and threatening a public health emergency ahead of Eid-ul Azha.
Piles of garbage, emitting foul odour and creating an unhealthy environment for residents, have become a common sight in many neighbourhoods of Faisalabad. Citizens are increasingly frustrated with the lack of reliable sanitation services despite repeated complaints to the Faisalabad Waste Management Company.
Muhammad Shahid, a resident of Kareem Town, says: “I filed a complaint with FWMC’s helpline, 1139, about the worsening cleanliness situation in our neighbourhood, but no sanitation staff arrived for three days.” When he called again, he says, a few sanitation workers showed up, swept the street, took photos for record and left.
Following more complaints, Shahid says, the area supervisor called him and, after some argument, promised a ‘full clean-up’ the next day. “They did come and cleaned the area once,” he said, “but after that, no one has turned up. The poor hygiene is persisting.”
Shahid says that until a few months ago, his area had received daily cleaning services and waste was regularly collected. Now, weeks go by without a visit from the sanitation staff.
The situation is particularly alarming considering that under the chief minister’s flagship Suthra Punjab programme, the FWMC outsourced the city’s sanitation services to a private company, Care Consortium, for a three-year contract worth about Rs 7.5 billion a year. The contract covers the City tehsil. It mandates the contractor to improve sanitation and transport at least 2,400 tonnes of solid waste a day to designated dumping sites.
According to documents obtained under The Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act 2013, the FWMC handed over not only operations but also significant resources to the private contractor. These included 2,010 sanitation workers, 78 sanitation supervisors, 149 drivers and 68 helpers. In terms of machinery, 27 chain arm roll trucks, 15 compactors, 36 dumpers, 12 tractors, ten excavators, four vacuum sweepers, two mechanical washers, five tractor trolleys, 56 mini-tippers, 186 waste collection container and 700 handcarts were handed over to the contractor.
The contractor was asked to hire 2,873 more sanitation workers, 140 supervisors, 697 drivers and 76 helpers and procure 89 more chain arm roll trucks, 65 compactors, 82 dumpers, 13 tractors, ten excavators, eight vacuum sweepers, four mechanical washers, two drain cleaners, 399 loader rickshaws, 33 tractor trolleys, 124 mini-tippers, 2,632 collection containers and 2,315 handcarts.
After more than seven months, the contractor has reportedly failed to recruit the required staff or deploy the promised machinery. Moreover, they have not established the six new temporary collection points or identified land for a new dumping site as stipulated in the agreement.
The apparent failure of this outsourcing experiment has prompted many citizens to question the transparency, oversight and accountability of the exercise. Despite the massive financial outlay, basic sanitation services in many neighbourhoods have deteriorated, putting public health at risk.
Reports indicate that the FWMC may have violated Public Procurement Regulatory Authority rules in awarding contracts.
Requests made under the Punjab Transparency and Right to Information Act 2013 to obtain contract details and procurement documentation have been met with delays, fueling suspicions of non-compliance and lack of transparency.
The situation is particularly alarming considering that under the chief minister’s flagship Suthra Punjab programme, the FWMC outsourced the city’s sanitation services to a private company, Care Consortium, for a three-year contract worth about Rs 7.5 billion a year.
The FWMC has also failed to develop a proper monitoring system for assessing the contractor’s performance based on key indicators such as waste collection, manual sweeping, mechanical sweeping, mechanical washing, waste management, bulk waste collection, dumpsite operations and de-silting. The FWMC has also not publicly disclosed the amount paid to the contractor since the start of operations.
Attempts by The News on Sunday to contact FWMC spokesperson Muteeb Virk and the director of communications of Care Consortium, Awais Dogar, through phone calls and WhatsApp messages have received no response.
It is important to note that the FWMC has not only outsourced sanitation in Faisalabad city but also in five other tehsils of Faisalabad district - Saddar, Jaranwala, Samundri, Tandlianwala and Jhumra - as well as across three neighbouring districts: Jhang (including Ahmedpur Sial, 18-Hazari, Shorkot), Toba Tek Singh (including Gojra, Kamalia, Pir Mahal) and Chiniot (including Lalian and Bhowana). The standards of cleanliness in these areas are reportedly similar to that in Faisalabad city. Private contractors in these rural and peri-urban areas have failed to maintain basic sanitation services despite receiving multimillion-rupee annual contracts.
Another grave concern is the exploitation faced by sanitation workers employed under the outsourced system. Workers report that they are not being paid according to their job contracts and are denied essential benefits, such as social security registration and minimum wage compliance. They claim that there are delays in salary payments, forced overtime beyond eight hours and no rest days.
In addition, the workers say, they have not received appropriate uniforms for the current season. Many continue to wear the winter uniforms issued seven months ago, despite extreme summer heat. Protests by sanitation workers have failed to elicit any meaningful response from FWMC or the contractors.
President of the Ittehad Labour and Staff Union at Faisalabad Waste Management Company, Abrar Sahotra, said in an interview with TNS that the contractor responsible for sanitation services had failed to fulfil his obligations regarding manpower and equipment, despite securing a major contract under the Punjab government’s Suthra Punjab initiative. As a result, public complaints about poor sanitation continue to rise in various parts of the city.
“Since the FWMC was established in 2013, the problems faced by sanitation workers have only increased,” Sahotra said. “The workers have not been paid their four-month salary arrears under the Minimum Wage Act 2024, nor have they received group insurance payments.”
Sahotra said that in a move allegedly orchestrated by the contractor, sanitation workers’ salary accounts had been arbitrarily transferred from Bank of Punjab to JS Bank. This change has caused significant issues for workers in accessing their wages. “Instead of cheque books, workers have been issued ATM cards, which only allow withdrawals of up to Rs 10,000 per day. The contractor’s staff allegedly uses the bank’s mobile app to withdraw money from the workers’ accounts,” he said.
Chairman of the Labour Qaumi Movement, Baba Latif Ansari, criticised the outsourcing of a core public service, calling it ‘a reflection of FWMC’s failure.’
“Private companies awarded such contracts must, as per labour laws, pay skilled worker wages, at least Rs 42,000 per month. They are also legally obligated to provide annual, casual and medical leave and register workers with the EOBI and Punjab Employees Social Security,” he said.
Ansari demanded that sanitation workers be paid bonuses from company profits, provided with group insurance and either be granted pension benefits based on past service or receive gratuity for it. Notably, the outsourcing agreement signed by FWMC requires contractors to provide these benefits. In practice, the company has neglected its implementation.
Urban development experts have expressed concerns over the lack of transparency in FWMC’s monitoring mechanism. They argue that the success of the Suthra Punjab initiative depends on improving oversight, ensuring accountability and enhancing the role of civil society.
“Increasing citizen participation and civil society monitoring can help prevent the waste of billions in public funds and pressure contractors and FWMC to fulfil their contractual obligations,” says one expert.
In the absence of transparency, effective oversight and labour rights protection, the promise of a cleaner and healthier environment under Suthra Punjab may remain unfulfilled. Urgent corrective actions, regulatory enforcement and community engagement are vital to restoring public trust and ensuring both citizens well-being and workers’ dignity.
The writer has been associated withjournalism for the past decade. He tweetsnaeemahmad876