Problems with Operations

By and large, the main activity of PHA is maintenance of the already built parks infrastructure. Other operational activity includes working on new projects, management of billboard business, maintenance of nurseries and maintenance of night-scapes. Yet the biggest chunk of activity comprises of maintaining the plantations all over Lahore.

In this regards the key inputs are fuel and water, and PHA does not managing either of them in any organized or thought out manner. The current routine takes the various vehicles, including the road cleaning machine, and importantly the tractors that pull the water tanks, to its designated fuel stations. The various vehicles are all parked at the central hub of their operations, After fueling, the tractors pull the water containers all the way up to the central depot near Wagha Border, to fill the water containers with water. Once filled, the designated driver begins his shift of work, which starts at 03:00 AM in the morning. The driver, and one coworker, set out to water the plantations all around Lahore. Each driver has been allotted their designated area under the five zonal scheme, and the driver has to water all of the plantation designated to him no matter how long it takes, and he continues to water even, well into the day.

A few key problems arise due to this routine. First, the procedure of having one centralized hub of operations and the parking of all vehicles at this central drastically increases the amount of fuel consumed to do the job. A vehicle to be used in Johar Town, for example, is parked at the same place where a vehicle to be used at The Mall is parked.

Second, the process of going to Wagha Border each morning to fill the water tanks also contributes to the excessive utilization of fuel due to the same centralized depot. In contrast, if there were zonal or regional depots, this problem of fuel consumption would not arise. This clearly shows a lack of planning, and of even sensitivity towards issues of energy and conservation, especially in a country such as Pakistan, that is already struggling to meet its energy needs.

Third is the issue of the timing of water. Water is the main ingredient, so to say, at PHA. Without water, PHA could not do much of the things is does, so really it is the key resource. Even so, PHA continues to water the plants of Lahore in the sizzling heat of the Pakistani day. The extreme heat can cause water retention levels to be extremely low due to rapid evaporation due to the immense heat of the daytime, resulting in wastage of water!

Current attitude of management shows extreme lack of education and vision even in the fields of irrigation, and this while all the related management has degrees in agriculture or related fields. In all its many years of operation, management at PHA has not learned how to manage its key input efficiently. This, although it is a major issue, is in our view only a symptom of the under lying problem (which shall be discussed shortly), the problem of lack of professionalism, and an organizational culture that is not sensitive to issues of efficiency, and a scientific approach to things.

Another result of this work routine is that PHA owned, heavy vehicles are out on the street in the day time. Whether there is strain of traffic on the roads or not, PHA vehicles continue to water the plants, and clean the roads when it is least effective to do so and when they cause the most disturbance to the flow of traffic.