Naveed Ahmed

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has been taking various steps to promote e-governance in the province for eradicating corruption and upholding merit and transparency.

Besides several other initiatives, the KP government recently launched e-stamp papers to combat fraud in real estate transactions. The initiative is expected to not only uproot corruption but also make the process of the sale and purchase of land easy and smooth. In the past, several days were required to process stamps for selling and purchasing real estate.

Khanzada Wazir, Assistant Secretary of the Revenue and Estate Department of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, told WealthPK that the Punjab Board of Information Technology (PBIT) assisted the KP Board of Revenue in launching the e-stamp papers scheme. “Fraudulent agents will never be able to use stamps other than the original ones to commit fraud in the future as this initiative will record property transactions digitally,” he added.

He said that e-stamp papers would be introduced in all districts of the province. However, the scheme was launched on a pilot basis in Nowshera. The branch of the National Bank of Pakistan in Nowshera offers e-stamps for an amount between Rs2,000 and Rs25,000. The scheme would be extended to the entire province and e-stamp papers will be available in all districts by the end of December.

“The only requirement for these e-stamp papers is a functioning internet connection. All you need to do is tell us why you want to buy expensive non-judicial or judicial stamp papers. Furthermore, you will be required to provide your name, the seller’s name, the person from whom you will purchase, and their CNIC numbers for acquiring e-stamp papers,” said Khanzada Wazir.

The e-stamping was launched in 2016 in Punjab. It has produced impressive results. the e-stamping system generated an income of Rs244 billion for the provincial government of Punjab. “Using this system, the KP government is also anticipating a high level of revenue for the province,” said the official.

The scheme will assist the government in collecting taxes in the future to meet its target. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has taken the step to eliminate counterfeit stamp paper and the fraud associated with it. The old stamp papers will be no longer valid after the extension of the scheme to the entire province.

Khanzada Wazir told WealthPK that the revenue department developed a mobile app to facilitate the officials of the board of revenue to validate the e-stamp papers and challans by the board of auditors. The new system will significantly reduce the time required for the issuance of stamp papers.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Mahmood Khan said at the inauguration of the e-stamp papers system in Peshawar that the provincial government is determined to provide e-governance services to people at their doorsteps. PITB Chairman Azfar Manzoor, Senior Member of the Board of Revenue Syed Zafar Ali Shah and Additional Secretary Finance Ammara Khan signed a memorandum of understanding for the implementation of the system in the province at the ceremony.

Credit : Independent News Pakistan-WealthPk