During a meeting of the National Assembly’s Interior Committee, chaired by Raja Khurram Nawaz, the Chairman of NADRA shared important updates regarding identity card services and fees. This discussion highlighted NADRA’s operational limitations and future plans, especially concerning office expansions and service charges.
Key Insights on NADRA ID Card Fees and Office Expansion
In the committee briefing, the NADRA Chairman addressed the current limitations in expanding NADRA’s offices across Pakistan. He stated that establishing new offices in various areas could lead to an increase in the fees for obtaining national identity cards, which NADRA aims to avoid.
“There are currently 61 tehsils without NADRA offices,” the Chairman noted. He explained that although the government had announced new NADRA offices in some areas, delimitations had not yet been carried out in those tehsils, complicating the expansion process. NADRA operates with self-generated funds, maintaining consistent service fees without any increases or card renewals.
Questions Raised by Zartaj Gul in Committee Meeting
Committee member Zartaj Gul raised several questions during the session, focusing on recent administrative decisions. She inquired about the criteria for recent appointments made by the caretaker governments, specifically questioning the security reasons behind the dismissal of certain officers and potential issues with their qualifications. Gul also highlighted that NADRA achieved a record revenue of 53 billion PKR, requesting a breakdown of the expenses within that revenue.
She further advocated for NADRA mobile vans to be deployed to underserved areas within her constituency, aiming to make identity services more accessible to remote populations.
NADRA Chairman’s Response on Appointments and Revenue Management
In response, the NADRA Chairman clarified that, aside from the appointment of the Chairman and Board by the federal government, all other appointments are managed by NADRA itself. He assured the committee that NADRA adheres to rigorous internal protocols for appointments and revenue management, ensuring transparency and accountability.
This meeting emphasized NADRA’s commitment to balancing service quality with cost-effective operations, while addressing the public’s demand for increased access to identity card services across Pakistan.
