Assessing The Benefits of Devolution in Municipal Waste Management: The Transition from Waste Mangement Companies to Suthra Punjab Agencies During the Eid Ul Azha Operation in Narowal (2025–26)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70670/sra.v4i2.2321Abstract
The sanitation issues in Punjab have been persistent, with increasing waste, blocked drains, and a gradual deterioration of public areas. In this context, the Government of Punjab initiated “Suthra Punjab,” the most ambitious province wide sanitation campaign in history. The program initially replicated the Lahore Waste Management Company model and established waste management companies at Punjab's divisional headquarters, responsible for cleaning the entire division, both urban and rural areas. The company model was successful in a few large cities, but virtually all rural areas were neglected. The program was then restructured, devolving administrative and financial authority from the divisions to district level Suthra Punjab agencies in February 2026. This paper is based on three theories: Decentralisation Theory, Principal Agent Theory, and Fiscal Federalism (Devolution) Theory to assess benefits and drawbacks of devolution of municipal waste management from Waste Management Companies (WMCs) to Suthra Punjab agencies in Punjab by comparing the most difficult cleanliness drive during the Eid ul Azha 2025 & 2026 in Narowal, when the daily waste increased from 677 tons to 1,760 tons, which is two and a half times the normal load, in just three days. The paper explores simple research questions. This paper concludes that the Suthra Punjab agency model has clearly better sanitation coverage in the district and has devolved administrative and financial powers from the Waste management companies to the districts. However, the district Suthra Punjab agency is not yet fully empowered as envisioned in Article 140A of the Constitution of Pakistan, 1973, because it is led by Deputy Commissioner rather than an elected Local Government Representative. The figures used in this paper for Narowal are taken from the District Eid ul Azha plan 2026.
