creating hurdles in progress and development. He said that they should concentrate on financial problems as well as security issues adding that a comprehensive book could be authored on the Tehreek-e-Insaf’s ‘Dharna’ episode.
Earlier, the interior minister inaugurated an online system for the renewal of CNICs. Addressing the inaugural ceremony of Computerised National Identity Cards (CNIC), the interior minister said that better services were being introduced in the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) in the next six months.
The interior minister also said that Nadra was going to establish a DNA laboratory in the next six months which would facilitate all the law enforcement agencies to carry out investigation of cases. He added that the authority would introduce 13 next generation business centers of international standards to facilitate the masses in the next six to seven months. “Now there is no need to come to the Nadra office for renewal of identity cards as this facility is being provided online.”
Nisar said a tracking system had been introduced in Nadra through which one could know the status of one’s CNIC, adding that a citizen would have to come to the Nadra office for the first time for biometric verification for acquiring a CNIC.
Nisar also said that services of Nadra had improved a lot and thousands of fake identity cards had so far been blocked. He also wished to make Nadra a transparent and corruption-free organisation.
He added, “We are going to centralise the entire data to end corruption and to ensure online verification of identity cards.”He further said that Nadra had earned a profit of five billion rupees, adding that there was a backlog of 650,000 cards, but now it had become zero within six months. He lauded the hard work of the Nadra employees to end the backlog and to make the organisation a profitable institution.
Nisar said the step had been taken to provide relief to the people as they would no longer have to stand in long queues outside the Nadra centres.
“With a single click, the people will be able to renew their identity cards on computers and get updates on the status of their application through the new online system,” he said.He also said that a DNA testing lab would be established under Nadra which would work to facilitate the armed forces of the country.
Nisar also announced that the government planned to set up 13 international level business centres in the next seven months, which would work as one-stop place for issuance of identity cards and passports.
“The information of birth, death, marriage and divorce certificates will be digitalised and centralised to avoid issuance of fake documents,” he stressed.Providing statistics, the interior minister said some 64,000 passports were blocked last year, adding the institution had earned Rs5 billion for the government.
Nisar reiterated that the government was making utmost efforts to ensure not a single incompetent and corrupt officer should work at Nadra. Nisar also said that Nadra had been turned into a profitable organisation.“Nadra’s performance is satisfactory,” he said, adding that it had earned a profit of billions of rupees this year.