'500,000 CNICs are not blocked in Karachi'

Interior minister rejects claim of Khawaja Izharul Hassan, says investigation underway

KARACHI: Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan rejected the claim of Opposition Leader in the Sindh Assembly Khawaja Izharul Hassan that 500,000 Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs) have been blocked in Karachi.

Nisar said that 350,000 CNICs have been blocked in Pakistan, out of which 173,000 cards have been permanently blocked and the investigation of other cards is in process.

He said this while talking to the media after the inauguration of a mega centre of the National Database and Regulation Authority (NADRA) in Phase 1 of Defence Housing Authority (DHA) on Friday.



The people of Karachi must be facilitated by NADRA officials, Nisar said, maintaining that the two mega centres inaugurated in Karachi on Friday and the third mega centre, which will be inaugurated in SITE area in May, will provide services to the citizens 24/7.

The centre in DHA, where 23 counters will simultaneously facilitate people through a one-window operation, can process up to 1,600 applications in a single day.

The interior minister visited the media centre after the inauguration and said another mega centre in North Nazimabad, which was inaugurated on the same day, and the one in SITE area had a cost of Rs370 million and could process 5,000 applications in a single day.



The issues of the public won't be resolved by establishing state-of-the-art buildings but by facilitating them, said Nisar.

According to him, such mega centres will be opened in other parts of the country as well.

He directed the NADRA employees to serve people in a professional and polite manner while issuing CNICs as per the rules and regulations.

Nisar also requested the NADRA chairperson to form a complaint centre in every NADRA office and encourage the public's suggestions.



Those employees who serve well must be given incentives and those who do not must be taken to task, Nisar said.

He reiterated that 600 NADRA employees, who were involved in issuing fake CNICs, had been investigated and most of them have been dismissed by NADRA.