IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

Machine Readable Passport (MRP) will be introduced in the country from September, 15, 2004. The project will cost Rs 493 million. An agreement signing ceremony was held here Saturday in NADRA, head office in this regard. Director General Passport, Shafqat Naqvi and Director General Project, NADRA, Brig Muhammad Zubair Ahmad signed the accord. Chairman NADRA, Brig (Retd), Saleem Ahmad Moeen and other senior officials were also present on the occasion. A team of Research and Development department of NADRA has developed the first ever machine in the world for preparation of readable passport. As soon as the passport is placed on machine, the entire record of concerned person and his or her original photograph will appear on the machine. The applicant will put his or her thumb on machine. The door will be opened.

MRP is conceived to absorb the knowledge based capacity using NADRA’s state of the art data warehouse and infrastructure facilities. The project shall operate at tandem with the projects of e-government, installation of data networks and other initiatives for capacity building in the field of information technology. The project has been necessitated to overcome the serious bottlenecks, which are being faced by the implementing agencies. By the issuance of Machine Readable Passports, visas supported by and integrated automated border control system shall curb the tender cries to a great extent, consonant to the standard established by International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The system being conceived shall be supported by database for an online verification of all documents. This shall eliminate human discretion at passport issuance offices during passport making and border exit/enter points during verification of credentials of travelers by curbing any illegal practices.

The final agreement was signed between NADRA, Immigration and Passport department. NADRA is a consulting firm will be taking care of different components within the overall project framework. The new mechanism abbreviated as MRP (Machine Readable Passport) and ABC (Automated Border Control Integration Only) which incorporates latest technologies such as biometrics, digital printing, recognition techniques, image communication, machine readability and Online data support is designed to provide a comprehensively integrated system with indigenous in-puts to meet the security and passengers facilitation challenges of the future. The entire project is based on reliable technologies in the field of production, data collection and verification, personalization, data transmission to a repository and issuance of travel documents and its linkage with on-line computerized database that also houses passenger’s data originating from the entry/exit points. MRP is a national project of high priority. Successful implementation of this project will be a key towards government efforts to restore the credibility of immigration infrastructure in the country.

Quelle: PakTribune, 22.05.2004