Daily Times

The Board of Revenue Punjab’s initiative to provide doorstep revenue services has hit delays, leaving farmers across the province in distress. The project, which aimed to digitize agricultural land records for improved accessibility and convenience, has seen significant setbacks in its digital record-keeping process, impacting farmers’ ability to manage their land records effectively.

According to details, out of 23,503 villages in Punjab, only 14,296 have had their land records digitized, while 9,207 villages remain pending. In several areas of Lahore, including 12 villages in Raiwind Tehsil and 8 in Lahore Cantonment, the digital record process has yet to be initiated. Other major cities, such as Gujranwala, Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur, Multan, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Gujrat, Sahiwal, and Sargodha, also face similar delays, causing considerable inconvenience to local farmers who rely on updated records for various legal and administrative purposes.

Sources cite staffing shortages, technical issues, and lack of resources as primary reasons for the delays. Farmers report that these issues are not only obstructing access to their land records but also creating complications in legal matters tied to their properties. They urge the government to expedite the project’s completion so that essential services can be provided seamlessly. The Punjab government previously asserted that the digitization process would offer farmers secure, modern land records, reducing disputes and streamlining agricultural reforms. However, given the current state of the project, immediate action is needed to resolve farmers’ ongoing concerns.