Delayed dues disrupt cleanliness operation.

LAHORE -- Massive delay allegedly on the part of Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) in clearing huge payments of over Rs2 billion to two Turkish firms has turned the provincial capital into a 'garbage city', exposing negligence of the Punjab government in resolving the issue despite knowing it since long.

Officials mention government's plan of restructuring LWMC on the pretext of ending corruption a main reason behind this mess Lahorites have been facing since the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf took over control of the country's biggest province.

'From the day-1, the government started expressing doubts over the affairs of LWMC and other companies. First, it planned to wind up this company. But later it came to know that its action would be a disaster. So they gave a plan to abolish the company's outsourcing model and replace it with a new semi-outsourcing paradigm on the pretext of 'saving money' and 'ending corruption',' deplores an official source in the company.

Lahore metropolitan city has been in trouble for the last one year in view of waste collection and disposal. The Turkish contractors earlier stopped waste lifting twice after the government failed to clear their payments. Resultantly, a large number of sanitary workers also faced delay in receiving monthly salaries from the contractors.

'For...