Pakistan's Machine Readable Passport being appreciated world over
Pakistan Times Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: Owing to distinctive high-tech features of Finger Identification and Facial Recognition in Machine Readable Passport (MRP) Pakistan has become the first country in the world to issue a passport using both the technologies thus MRP is rapidly drawing attention of the citizens as well as the world community.

The public is also showing much interest in getting their new passports from Machine Readable System and approaching the concerned quarter to avail the opportunity and replace their old passports with the new one.

The First Country

With issuance of MRP Pakistan has become the first country in the world to issue a passport using both the Automated Finger Identification and Facial Recognition system.

Thus becoming one among a few, if not the only, countries to use the existing name, photograph, signature etc. of the applicant directly from the Computerized National Identity Card Database for making the passport. This will completely eliminate issuance of passports by fraudulent means.

The popularity of the MRP can be judged from praising comments of the overseas Pakistanis where a large number of people commended the project and termed it unique to raise image of the country in the world.

In their comments appearing in the national dailies people had appreciated the concept and its practical demonstration with regard to facilitate masses in furnishing the required information in an easy way.

Passport Commuters

One of the passport commuter said "I would like to share my experience in India when I visited that country recently with my new machine-readable passport (MRP). On the immigration counter, I saw the officer holding on to the passport as if he had seen nothing like this in his life".

He said he was fearful that the officer may refuse entry since this had happened a few days earlier when some MRP holder was reportedly sent back from Dubai on the grounds that the immigration authorities there had not been informed by the Pakistan government of the new travel document.

Instead, he said, "what I saw was that a number of immigration staff came over to see the passport and then they asked me how I had received it. When I told them that there were no application forms involved and that the passport office had issued this on the basis of an old passport and my CNIC, they were really impressed".

Symbol of Pride

In the words of one officer, this technology was not seen even in many western countries passports, adding, "I must say that these are one of the few occasions when I felt proud to present my passport at an immigration counter outside Pakistan".

The other report said, "It is rare for Pakistan to come up with something of international standard, and one can see that the new machine-readable passport is in fact above the usual international standards set for many countries".

Perspective

While giving some serious thoughts after detection of some heinous nature cases recently, government has decided to utilize the authentic database of National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), mandating it to come up with such a project, which minimizes, if not eliminates, fraudulent cases in the issuance of passports.

Checking identification and authenticity of holders' specifications was the central point in the project.

NADRA having studied such projects already in implementation in different countries has developed a system, which is unique in features as compared to projects of this category the world over and provides complete identification and recognition solutions.

Sources who were privy to the whole process said the Authority has conducted all tests and exercises to ensure that the system fully complies with the features it has programmed on and hundred percent results were achieved.

The Benefits

MRP project may benefit Pakistan manifolds. First, country could check the flourishing menace of human smuggling once the automatic border control is integrated with the Machine Readable Passport.

Second, it will help country procure contracts for skilled and semi-skilled workforce from different countries, which otherwise are denied because of sending of Pakistani immigrants illegally.

And third, it will save people from monetary losses and humiliation while being exploited at hands of illegal manpower agents.

MRP project as apparent from its features will not only help the country to curb such illegal practices but also help it procure contracts for export of skilled and semi-skilled labour force to different countries. Ultimately it will facilitate genuine persons to get visas conveniently.●