Lahore Arts Council has issued a formal directive mandating biometric attendance for all officers and employees with effect from September 29, 2026, bringing the cultural institution in line with the broader push toward digitally verifiable attendance systems being adopted progressively across Punjab’s public sector. The order, issued by the deputy director administration of Lahore Arts Council, applies across all staff categories and extends to both the Mall Complex and the Cultural Complex, ensuring consistent implementation across the institution’s multiple physical locations.
Under the new policy, all officers and employees are required to report to their offices by 9:15 am, with biometric verification serving as the formal mechanism for recording their arrival. The directive makes clear that attendance cannot be marked through any alternative or informal means, and that failure to comply without a valid reason will be treated as a violation subject to strict disciplinary action. Office timing violations will be treated with equal seriousness, reinforcing that the system is being introduced as an accountability mechanism with real consequences rather than a purely administrative record-keeping upgrade.
A practical provision has also been built into the directive to handle technical contingencies. Should the biometric system develop a fault at any point, the concerned officer is required to immediately inform the administration, ensuring that technical failures are formally reported rather than used as informal exemptions from attendance requirements. All departmental heads at Lahore Arts Council have been specifically instructed to ensure proper attendance records are maintained within their respective teams, distributing accountability to senior staff rather than relying solely on central enforcement to drive compliance.
The move reflects a growing pattern of biometric and digital attendance adoption across Pakistan’s public institutions as part of a broader effort to improve administrative discipline, reduce informal attendance practices, and create auditable records of workforce presence across government and government-affiliated organisations.
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