Islamabad, Nov 11: In a meeting of National Assembly Standing Committee on Interior, the Director-General (DG) of Immigration and Passports briefed the members regarding the significant delays in passport issuance.
The DG highlighted that the country is still using outdated machines and software, some over 20 years old, which has hindered the passport processing capacity.
“We worked throughout the year to secure funds from the Ministry of Finance, but our efforts have been met with limited success,” said the DG. “We are currently using machinery that is over two decades old, and despite this, we were previously able to process 75,000 passports daily, even though our actual capacity was only 22,000. Now, with 25 printers in operation, our capacity has significantly improved.”
The DG reported that the backlog in the “Fast-Track” category has been entirely cleared, but there remains a backlog of 170,000 passports in the “Urgent” category.
He assured the committee that this backlog would be cleared in the next two to three weeks. Additionally, two new machines for e-passports are expected to arrive soon.
“The total revenue generated from passport issuance over the past year amounts to 50 billion rupees, with an additional 20 billion already earned this year,” the DG added. “However, we are still facing a severe shortage of funds, despite our best efforts.”
The committee members expressed concern over the delays, particularly regarding the inconvenience caused to students and people facing medical emergencies.
Chairman of the Committee, while asking for a clear timeline on when the backlog would be resolved, raised the issue of the persistent delays.
Zartaj Gul, Member of the National Assembly, expressed frustration, saying, “Despite being a parliamentary leader of a party and having a court order, my passport has not been issued. Why are you not issuing passports, even when all necessary paperwork is in order?”
She also questioned the authorities about the blocked passports of parliamentarians and asked whether criminals or gang members’ passports had ever been blocked. “Have you ever blocked the passports of criminals or gang leaders? If so, provide us with that data,” Zartaj Gul demanded.
The DG confirmed that efforts were being made to resolve the situation, but the members of the committee demanded immediate action to streamline the process and provide citizens with the necessary services without delay.
