Revenue department: Services delivery centre inaugurated

PESHAWAR: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government inaugurated a services delivery centre at the revenue department in the city on Wednesday in an attempt to move towards a digitised age.

Under the new initiative, citizens can check their land records by visiting the office, submitting a token fee of Rs250 and giving the receipt of fee to the revenue officers. Once these formalities have been fulfilled, computer operators at the office will provide them a copy of the transfer documents after checking their computerised land records against the applicant’s name and CNIC number.

Minister for Revenue and Estate Ali Amin Gandapur inaugurated the centre which commenced operations on Wednesday.

Streamlined

“We have completed computerisation of 65 revenue estates out of 193 in Peshawar districts,” Subhanullah, a senior revenue consultant of the department, told journalists. “Those who own land in these 65 revenue estates will be provided services at the centre. Details on the remaining estates would be included as soon as they are computerised.”

According to the revenue consultant, the centre provides an alternative to patwaris who had a tendency to delay requests and make people uncomfortable while enquiring about their property. “Now the land records have been computerised and can’t be tampered with by anyone,” he said. “The owners can check them anytime.”

Subhanullah added the transfer of property would now be completed within a day. Property owners would have to pay a fee at the bank and visit the centre with the receipt to carry out the transfer.

Expanding horizons

Speaking on the occasion, Gandapur said the computerisation project in Mardan had been completed and efforts were afoot to initiate similar projects in six districts in the first phase.

During the second phase, 12 districts would be added to the project in June 2016.

“So far, we plan to run the project in 19 districts of the province,” he said. “The remaining six districts [do not have] proper land records.”

According to Gandapur, work on all 19 districts would be completed by December 2017.

“It would restore public confidence in the department,” he said. “[People will have the assurance] that no one can change ownership [of their property].”

The revenue minister added his department provided documents of land owned by Pakistan Railways free of cost. “The federal government’s revenue department should recover land [that has been] encroached and can seek help from the Peshawar DC in this regard,” he said.

Gandapur said the budget for the project is Rs4.9 billion and the chief minister has also taken an interest in the initiative.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 31^st, 2015.