Citizens to Get One-Window Access to Passport, CNIC and Domicile Services in AJK, GB
ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to establish “Easy Service Centres” in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB), allowing citizens to access services including NADRA, passports and domicile certificates under one roof.
A high-level meeting chaired by Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Establishment Division Senator Ahad Khan Cheema reviewed the establishment of Easy Service Centres in AJK and GB, as well as plans to expand the initiative to other cities across the country.
Federal Minister for IT Shaza Fatima Khawaja, Secretary Inter-Provincial Coordination Mohyuddin Wani, Secretary Communications Ali Sher Masood, chief secretaries of AJK and GB and other senior officials attended the meeting.
The federal minister directed the chief secretaries of AJK and GB to initiate the tendering process for establishing the centres in line with the prime minister’s instructions.
He said the federal government would provide the required funding, while the two chief secretaries agreed to move forward with the tendering process.
The meeting also considered hybrid, fully private and government-operated models for expanding the Easy Service Centres. Ahad Cheema directed officials to complete feasibility studies of the proposed models and submit recommendations to the prime minister.
He said a revenue-sharing mechanism should also be explored under which departments providing services at the centres, including NADRA and the Immigration and Passports Department, could contribute towards operational expenses.
The minister made it clear that if the private sector was involved, a mechanism should be developed to ensure that citizens were not burdened with additional costs.
“The purpose of Easy Service Centres is to facilitate the public, and their cost should not be passed on to citizens,” he said.
The meeting also reviewed the possibility of using centrally located post offices and other government buildings in different cities for establishing Easy Service Centres. However, no final decision was taken on the proposal.
What Are Easy Service Centres?
Easy Service Centres are designed as one-stop service facilities where citizens can access more than 60 government services under one roof.
The services include facilities related to NADRA, passports, domicile certificates, marriage certificates, and birth and death certificates, among others.
The expansion of the centres to AJK and Gilgit-Baltistan is expected to make access to multiple government services more convenient for citizens by bringing various departments together at a single location.
