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NADRA —task of providing 58.6 m id cards accomplished
From A Correspondent
THE National Database Registration Authority (NADRA) has completed its major task of providing 58.6 million national Identity Cards (IDs) to the citizens across the country, says its Chairman Brig. (retd) Saleem Ahmad Moeen. “In fact we have completed our task as people in the age group of 18-21 have already got their ID cards. Then we have also issued 4 million Machine Readable Passports to our citizens,” he further stated. In an interview with Khaleej Times, he said that NADRA has developed strong credentials which was why it was also getting contracts in the foreign countries. “NADRA’s expertise particularly on software programming is well recognised both in and outside Pakistan,” its chairman said.
Brig.(retd) Saleem Ahmad Moeen

NADRA, he said, has also undertaken a very prestigious project of Punjab government to have full details of its employees. “Manpower management is a very difficult task and we have started doing this job for the Punjab government,” he said hoping that Balochistan government would also award a similar contract to NADRA shortly. Giving the details of the activities of his organisation, he said NADRA had won a contract for developing a High Security Bangladesh Drivers’ License Project on February 2, 2006. He said that the Government of People’s Republic of Bangladesh had decided to introduce High Security driving licenses for all kinds of vehicles within 4 months. The decision was taken to prevent the use of fake licenses, curb road accidents and to ensure safety on the highways. The Bangladeshi government had sought open tenders last year. Amongst other 14 competitors, including India, and other international firms which took part in the bidding, NADRA got the project. NADRA also worked on Chaman border Control project which enables government of Pakistan to monitor the daily movement of Pakistan and Afghan citizens on across the border. Online Bill Payment System “Then there is another prestigious project of Online Bill Payment System which was inaugurated by President General Pervez Musharraf. This is the NADRA Kiosk project for payments of utility b i l l a t N A D R A Headquarters. “Five years back when NADRA was launched we faced a lot of criticism both from the general public and the media, who said millions of rupees have been wasted, but we kept on moving in the right direction as I had full confidence in the NADRA Chairman and his team. They have proved today that I was right and today the issuance of 58.6 million CNICs and 4 million Machine Readable Passports are a proof that with determination and perseverance one can overcome any obstacle and accomplish difficult tasks,” the NADRA chairman said quoting the president. He said today NADRA’s Machine Readable Passport was one of the best travel documents in the world. NADRA has been included in the top 50 IT companies of the world. The technological advancement achieved by NADRA is now bearing fruit and it is winning foreign projects as well. Brig.

Moeen said that NADRA has outbid some of the strongest companies in the international homeland sector in a challenging competition to secure the contract for Supply, Installation & Commissioning of Passport Issuing System in Kenya. The Department of Immigration, Kenya has awarded the contract to NADRA for a turnkey solution after a comprehensive Pre-Qualification and Tendering Activity in order to modernise its operations. NADRA developed and submitted a comprehensive technical and commercial proposal for Passport Issuing system to the Department of Immigration Kenya in March, 2007. NADRA bid for the Kenya Passport Issuing system against 6 international firms from countries including United Kingdom, USA, Canada, Germany & Israel. Technical and commercial evaluation NADRA stood out from the competition in the technical and commercial evaluation by the Tendering Authority. The system proposed by NADRA exceeded the technical requirements set forth by the Tendering Authority and was offered at the lowest price in the commercial bid. He also informed that NADRA has registered 2.15 million Afghan Refugees, residing in Pakistan, for their repatriation to Afghanistan. The whole process of registration was done in collaboration with the Ministry of SAFRON and UNHCR in less than three months. Talking about the NADRA Kiosk project, he said that in a bid to expand its Utility Bill Payment network and provide business opportunities to the citizens of Pakistan, NADRA is now franchising its Kiosks. “NADRA will provide the Kiosk machine against a reasonable security and will provide operational and maintenance support whereas the franchisee will be responsible for machine operations. Both parties will share the cost as well as revenue,” Brig. Moeen added. All those small entrepreneurs running a store/shop having sufficient and suitable space available are also eligible to deploy NADRA Kiosks. He also said that NADRA has started updating the death record of citizens of Pakistan by issuing the cancellation of CNIC certificate. Under the amended NADRA ordinance 2006, NADRA is responsible for maintaining the updated and current state of thecountry’s population through preserving the history records of the citizens. In case of any death, the successors are legally obliged to report the cancellation of CNIC for the deceased. The Chairman of the organisation also informed that NADRA’s Welfare programme envisaged an intake of 25 students each in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad/Rawalpindi. In this behalf 474 applicants had initially responded to the advertisement. An entry test which was subject to strict evaluation procedure was held simultaneously at Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. The welfare course was supervised by members of the NADRA Families Network on a voluntary basis.