Plan to provide online services for land records completed

Islamabad:

The Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development (OP&HRD) has finalized a plan to provide online services for land records to overseas Pakistanis following instructions from the prime minister.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has taken the issues related to transfer of property and issuance of related certificates seriously.

Currently, overseas Pakistanis either have to grant power of attorney to their relatives or physically visit Pakistan to manage property transfers and obtain other land documents.

According to sources, the D&D Ministry has largely addressed the issues with plans to use technology for online land transfers and issuance of documents through Pakistani embassies abroad.

A follow-up meeting is scheduled for next Wednesday with the Punjab Land Department to finalize details such as cost sharing and equipment required for the entire process.

This initiative will serve as a model project in Punjab and then replicated in other provinces.

As directed by Chief Minister Shehbaz, Secretary OP&HRD Dr Arshad Mahmood chaired a meeting with all stakeholders.

During the meeting, the secretary expressed his grave concern over the challenges faced by the overseas Pakistanis in safeguarding and maintaining possession of the territories, which often remained disputed for years.

In response, the director general of the Punjab Registration Authority (PLRA) emphasized that the partnership proposal to provide land registration services to overseas Pakistanis was a pioneering step in the age of information technology, aimed at facilitating land-related transactions .

This initiative will offer three important services – Fard, e-registration and mutation. In addition, electronic facilitation will eliminate middlemen in transactions such as sales and purchases, reducing the risks of fraud and litigation.

PLRA will send a new request to the Ministry of OP&HRD outlining the expected benefits of the initiative, which will precede the service level agreement between the two entities.

Addressing the concerns, DG PLRA noted that e-registration services were already available across Punjab. All services will be accessible to overseas Pakistanis abroad, eliminating the need to travel to Pakistan for property registration and mutation.

The OP&HRD secretary informed the PLRA that the ministry had been in consultation with various stakeholders, including the ministries of Finance, External Affairs, Justice and Justice, as well as inter-provincial coordination.

The secretary reiterated his concern about mutation issues. After detailed discussions, several decisions were taken to facilitate overseas Pakistanis by providing online services for land records and property transfer.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 9^u2024.

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