Naveed Aman Khan
COMPUTERISATION of the Punjab Land Record Authority was initiated by former Chief Minister Punjab Choudhry Pervaiz Ilahi in 2011 and completed during the Chief Ministership of Shahbaz Sharif. This project was funded by the World Bank.
It successfully worked and World Bank declared it the best project during the year 2017. The worthy project was aimed to secure the valued land record from irregularities and fake documentation, convert it from ledgers (band basta of patwari) to computer, ensure transparency and make easily accessible to the land owners.
Transparency and computerisation made ledger oriented forgeries impossible and corruption free. This limited bribes amongst conventional land record and Patwari system.
Since long land record had been maintained in ledgers but during last 11 years it has been streamlined and computerised.
The bureaucracy of decades old corrupt system opposed transparency and computerisation of the record and manual ledger based land record of the province is being given in the control of the same old Patwar support malafied system.
Malafied politicians for their personal political benefits are in favour of decomputerisation of the land record so that they could embezzle the record and deprive the week and poor of their properties easily with the help of ledger based patwari system where tempering and overwriting is possible.
Ledger based record remains property of the Patwaris. Transparent computerisation made procedures easily accessible.
Before computerisation many a times record offices has been intentionally ablased and in this exercise Patwaris have been taking the desired record with them as if it were their personal property. Computerisation proved that land record belongs to the masses and is not personal property of Patwaris and bureaucracy at all.
Computerisation and transparency was aimed to keep bribe lust Patwaris and Tehseeldars away from this system.
To bring transparency in the record system the then Chief Ministers Choudhry Pervaiz Ilahi and Shahbaz Sharif banned fresh recruitment of Patwaris and Tehseeldars and established an autonomous department for land record of the province and decided to recruit educated youth especially the females. Comparatively female staff is seen more dutiful and honest.
After computerisation provincial governments keeping fundamental human rights in view didn’t dismiss Patwaris and Tehseeldars and let them continue their work.
During the Chief Ministerships of Choudhry Pervaiz Ilahi and Shahbaz Sharif new Land Record Centres were set up. World Bank funded the project and fresh educated staff was recruited.
With limited resources and staff embezzled, tempered and full of mistakes record was computerised. In 2011 Land Revenue Act was amended and against Article 37 (a) Patwaris were stopped to maintain land record of computerised villages.
Against Article 37(c) Assistant Director Land Revenue (ADLR) or Land Revenue Officer (LRO) could only maintain land record and Patwaris and Tehseeldars were stopped to maintain land record.
Before this computerisation record was incorrect and incomplete. It was full of irregularities.
Bureaucracy in this regard has always been influencing the concerned staff. Patwari has always been leaving hundreds of thousands cases incomplete.
Normally after three years contact employees are confirmed but (ADLRs) have not been confirmed even having service of 11 years.
Besides clear court decision for the confirmation of ADLRs the concerned authorities are illogically, irrationally and unlawfully keeping quiet.
Is this not contempt of court? Additionally a summary of recruitment of 50 Revenue Officers is pending since long for approval of Senior Member Board of Revenue.
Recruitment of as many as 500 Service Centre Officers is also kept pending by the same. Punjab Land Revenue Authority is the only department which bears salaries of its employees itself.
This department contributes billions of rupees annually to the government exchequer. Before computerisation Board of Revenue has been depositing maximum 2 billion rupees in government coffers.
After computerisation amount of 8 billion rupees was deposited in 2016, 9 billion rupees in 2017, 16 billion rupees in 2018, 17 billion rupees in 2019 while double amount in 2020.
PLRA is the only department which has not caused any monitory loss to the government even during the worst conditions of the Corona pandemic.
To facilitate the land owners the department has extended its work worth adding 114 new centres.
To provide services to the people the department has initiated mobile van service also.
To attain political benefits violating articles 37(a) and 37(c) of the code of conduct PTI government has designated the powers of ADLRs and LROs to the old corrupt system bearers Patwari, Naib Tehseeldars and Tehseeldars.
Now recruitment of 5000 new Patwaris, Naib Tehseeldars and Tehseeldars is being made possible while recruitment of ADLRs and LROs is not being finalized yet.
Punjab Land Record Authority completely became independent in 2017. Taking disciplinary actions against corruption and misconduct this department has dismissed hundreds of its employees.
Is there any such precedent of punishment and accountability in decades old Patwari culture? The internal Audit System of Punjab Land Record Authority is transparent. Its vigilant Wing is super active which punishes the guilty on corruption, misappropriation and irregularities.
Rather to further ensure transparency of the land record of the province recruitment of already processed Assistant Director Land Record and Land Revenue Officers be finalised.
Corrupt old Patwar system is being brought back by recruiting of hundreds of new Patwaris, Naib Tehseeldars and Tehseeldars.
Is this not negation of the narrative of the PTI government against corruption and Patwar culture? Will bringing of old Patwarism not destroy already shattered Patwarkhana ledger system? Premier Imran Khan has always been opposing brutal and rotten police and patwar system but now he is doing otherwise.
For the comfort of the common masses Police and Patwar need to be thoroughly reformed and made flawless and technology based by all means.
—The writer is book ambassador, columnist, political analyst and author of several books based in Islamabad.
