Daily Times

The concerned authorities at National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) seem to be least bothered to provide citizens’ information to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) teams for ongoing census across the country, Daily Times has learnt reliably.

As per a document, the PBS repeatedly asked the NADRA authorities concerned to provide access to census monitoring dashboards to the concerned officials deployed at many areas in all provinces. The failure, the sources said, was alleviating many doubts about NADRA’s authorities as they might have deliberately intended to halt this national cause of the population census.

“The census field operations are the responsibility of provinces and the onus for providing the required information to them now lies with NADRA, but the authority is using delaying tactics on this matter,” said an official at the PBS while wishing anonymity.

Apart from previous intimation to NADRA authorities regarding the issue, the PBS also wrote a letter to Chairman Tariq Malik and conveyed the genuine concern. “In pursuance of decisions of the eighth meeting of the census monitoring committee held on March 11, 2023 under the chairmanship of the minister PD&SI, it has been decided that the statistics are required by the provincial government, specially Sindh, may be included in the monitoring dashboard which has already been deployed by the chief secretaries,” the letter reads, adding that role based access (of citizens information) is requested be provided to all provincial chief secretaries, commissioners, deputy commissioners and assistant commissioners.

The PBS requested the NADRA Chairman Tariq Malik to issue the directives to officials concerned of the authority to provide aforementioned information, adding that this was national activity and the data is being requested as it for broader improvement, transparency and credibility of this activity.

When contacted, Chairman Malik refused to respond over the issue saying that “our media and public engagement department can answer all queries of the media.” Rida Qazi, head of public engagement and spokesperson, said that no such reports have been received so for.

“Actually, the NADRA empowered the technology solution and willfully handed it over to PBS for this national cause,” she recalled.

After the 18th constitutional amendment, the census was a provincial subject. In this backdrop, the PBS had put the matter in the Council of Common Interests (CCI) which approved it subsequently. The CCI gave a nod for all methodologies and processes required to conduct the census.

“The cooperation of the NADRA in provision of data and information was among such approved methodologies,” said an official at the bureau while wishing anonymity, adding that it was a historic and exemplary move to conduct a digital census across the country.

Initially, the PBS was tasked with digitising the census process to address the concerns raised on the results of the 2017 census results.

Understanding the importance of a consultative process, the PBS took all steps and measures to ensure ownership and understanding of the digital census at all levels and fully on board all stakeholders, especially provincial governments, through a consultative process, recalled a senior official at the PBS privy to the all census process but requested not to be named.

As per planned census plan, the census was supposed to cover everyone residing in the country regardless of the type of dwelling they reside in or their residential status.

Moreover, the identity of the enumerator visiting houses can also be verified through the Pakistan Bureau of Census website while the NADRA was supposed to provide technology solutions. “At this time, the NADRA is not making it in many areas of the country,” the official claimed.