The Capital Development Authority (CDA) has taken another major step toward modernizing Islamabad’s sanitation system. The authority has opened financial bids for its Rs16 billion waste management project, bringing the long-delayed outsourcing plan closer to implementation.
The four-year initiative aims to improve garbage collection and cleanliness services across both urban and rural areas of the federal capital. If approved, the project will introduce a more organized waste management system while supporting the CDA’s existing sanitation workforce.
Turkish-Led Joint Venture Emerges as Lowest Bidder
According to officials, a joint venture led by Atlas Pak Waste Management Company, a Turkish firm, submitted the lowest financial bid for both the urban and rural service packages.
The only competing proposal came from a joint venture comprising NJC, MMC, and Imperial Venture.
Officials said the Turkish-led consortium’s combined bid was approximately Rs380 million lower than its competitor’s offer. Consequently, the financial proposal will now be forwarded to the project consultant before the contract is formally awarded.
What the Project Includes
The proposed agreement will remain in effect for four years.
Under the project, the selected contractor will be responsible for:
- Garbage collection across Islamabad
- Transportation of waste to the Losar landfill site in Rawalpindi
- Citywide sanitation and cleanliness services
The initiative is expected to strengthen waste management operations throughout the capital while expanding services to areas that currently lack a formal collection system.
Earlier Bid Dispute Delayed the Process
The bidding process previously faced controversy during the technical evaluation stage.
Although Atlas Pak Waste Management Company secured the highest technical score, the company was initially declared non-responsive because of a missing document.
However, the company maintained that the required document had already been submitted with its financial bid on the same day.
Following the complaint, CDA Chairman Sohail Ashraf sought clarification over the decision. He questioned how the company could be disqualified when the document was already available with the authority.
The matter was then reviewed by the Grievance Redressal Committee. After examining the case, the committee declared the bid responsive and allowed the company to participate in the financial bid opening.
Officials said that if the company had remained disqualified, the CDA would have awarded the contract at a cost Rs380 million higher than the lowest available bid.
Project Faced Repeated Delays
The outsourcing initiative has experienced several setbacks during the past two years.
According to officials, tenders were floated and cancelled multiple times before the financial bids were finally opened.
Meanwhile, the previous sanitation contract expired in February 2025. Since then, the CDA has relied primarily on its own resources to maintain cleanliness across Islamabad.
Rural Areas Still Lack Proper Waste Collection
At present, Islamabad’s rural areas do not have a formal waste collection system.
As a result, many residents dispose of garbage in open spaces and drainage channels, creating environmental and public health concerns.
Once the new agreement becomes operational, the CDA’s 1,100 sanitation workers will continue working alongside the selected private contractor to improve waste management across the capital.
Islamabad Still Awaits a Permanent Landfill Site
Despite being established in 1960, the CDA has yet to develop a permanent landfill site for Islamabad.
For several years, the city’s waste has been transported to the Losar landfill site in Rawalpindi. Earlier dumping locations, including the site in Sector I-12, were eventually abandoned.
The proposed outsourcing project is expected to improve garbage collection and sanitation services. However, Islamabad’s long-term waste management challenges, including the absence of a permanent landfill site, remain an important issue for the capital’s future development.
