We are mapping how local government works.

The Local State is building a public record of the institutions that run a place. It follows authority, money, staff and implementation from the province to the street.

Who decides? Who pays? Who can the citizen hold responsible?

Current work

Starting in Lahore

Our first full case is Lahore. We are reading the 2025 Act, tracking the steps needed to bring it into effect and mapping the city’s institutions and service boundaries.

Read the 2025 Act
A full reading of the Punjab Local Government Act, including what it assigns, what it leaves to later rules and what it does not transfer.
Research underway
Track implementation
A dated record of rules, delimitations, elections, transfer orders, staff, assets and money.
Method defined
Map Lahore
A working map of the institutions and service boundaries that govern the city, beginning with Shadman.
Source collection

Principles

Government close enough to reach

Public offices and services should be accessible. Distance and unclear boundaries should not exclude people from the state.

Authority at the lowest capable level

Decisions should sit at the lowest level that can handle them well. The function, money, staff and assets need to move together.

Services as rights

A lawful service should have a responsible institution, a standard, a deadline, a complaint route and an appeal.

How we read a place

A city is not one government. We follow the chain from the place a person lives to the office that can act.

Place
Institutions
Legal powers
Money and staff
Practice
Citizen route

Method

Show what the evidence can bear

Law and practice are separate. Every public claim should carry its source, relevant date, last checked date and evidence state.

Verified: A checked source directly supports the claim.
Reconstructed: We rebuilt the record from available evidence.
Inference: The evidence supports a conclusion but does not state it.
Open: The point remains unresolved.