The Auditor General of Pakistan (AGP) will carry out a special audit of the Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC), covering fuel consumption, vehicle mileage, and repair and maintenance of machinery. The decision follows a surprise inspection by the Chief Minister Inspection Team (CMIT), which found serious gaps in fleet management and record-keeping.
The CMIT inspected the Suthra Punjab Programme in Lahore on Sept 8 and 9, on the direction of Chief Minister. In its report, the team recommended that the administrative department arrange the special audit.
In a letter dated Oct 20, 2026, the Local Government and Community Department asked for an audit team to be deployed at the earliest. The letter was signed by Section Officer (Companies) Muhammad Aslam Nadeem. It noted that the CMIT chairman had submitted recommendations and that the Chief Minister wanted the findings addressed, particularly through the special audit.
CMIT Chairman Salman Ijaz signed the report on Oct 2. It was endorsed by Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Sajid Zafar Dall on Oct 9 and by Chief Secretary Zahid Akhtar Zaman on Oct 11.
Non-functional vehicles
During a physical inspection of vehicles at the Outfall Road and Thokar parking yard/workshop, the team found several vehicles that had been non-functional for months. Many unserviceable vehicles were also parked at the site.
The LWMC Deputy CEO told the team that the company carries out vehicle repairs and maintenance itself. He said most vehicles were handed over in 2021 by the predecessor company, Al-Burak, which had removed their Electronic Control Modules (ECMs), leaving them non-functional.
A total of 291 vehicles are proposed for auction. The process could not move forward earlier because the case was in litigation with international contractors.
Manual records and tracking discrepancies
The team found that records of engine oil changes, repairs and maintenance were kept manually. No computerised or digital system existed to record and monitor these activities.
At the LWMC control room, the team checked the live positions of compactors, loader rickshaws, containers and mechanical sweepers/washers through the vehicle tracking system. Vehicles that had been at workshops for repairs for about 15 days appeared as “non-reporting” in the system for around two months.
The gap between the non-reporting period and the recorded workshop arrival could not be explained. The team said this indicated a lag between the tracking system and workshop records that needs reconciliation. The team also monitored attendance of Suthra Punjab Programme staff through the “Lean Punjab Monitoring App.”
The CMIT recommended that the administrative department:
- arrange a special audit of LWMC, especially of fuel consumption, mileage and repair/maintenance;
- expedite the auction of condemned vehicles; and
- install a centralised digital Vehicle Maintenance Management System (VMMS) to keep vehicle-wise records of repairs, servicing, oil changes, spare parts replacement and costs.
The Suthra Punjab Authority was also asked to put an effective monitoring mechanism in place to check fuel pilferage and expenditure on repair and maintenance.
