Going digital: CM inaugurates land record computer centre

Project took four and half years to complete at the cost of Rs4.6 billion

KARACHI: This is the new era of transparency and corruption-free environment, said Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah.

He was addressing the media after the inauguration ceremony of computerised land records at Revenue Office Clifton.

People used to forge land records. Now, the records cannot be tampered with, he said. With the computerised system the harassment by patwaris (land revenue officials) will come to an end. "I hope they [patwaris] would not go on strike as the new system has stopped their business of minting illegal money," he said on a lighter note.



During the visit of the service centre, the CM punched his name in the computer system and got a certified copy of his five-acre land in Khairpur.

The system is centralised, people can get computerised certified copies of their land from any service centre, said Board of Revenue (BoR) member Rizwan Memon.

The project was started by former president Asif Ali Zardari and has been completed at the cost of Rs4.6 billion. It took four and half years to computerise almost five million records, he claimed. Ninety per cent of the records have been computerised, he added.

Future endeavours

The task of automation of all sub-registrars' offices has also been assigned to National Database and Registration Authority. This project will be completed by June 2017, said BoR member Zulfikar Shah.  Sindh government is also linking maps with land records, 60% of which has been completed. The project would be completed by December 2016.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 13^th, 2016.