AFTER completing all the prerequisites, I got my application, along with the fee of Rs2,500, submitted for the national identity card for overseas Pakistanis (NICOP) on April 30 at NRC, Awami Markaz, Karachi.

According to the rules, I should have got it within 30 days. Even after two months (on July 1), I was told that it is still not ready.

The next day I again went and another bombshell was waiting for me. I was intimated that my fingerprints’ data collected by NRC Awami Markaz, along with around 450 more applicants, got corrupted, so now I have to apply again and deposit the fresh application along with the fee, and wait for another minimum 20 days.

In this scenario, I have a few questions for Nadra’s top authorities. When was it detected that the data was corrupted and why was no action taken to intimate all the 450 applicants to contact the centre so that the damage done could have been mitigated at the earliest?

Why is Nadra charging again for the same service for no fault of theirs? The minimum courtesy demands that these 450 applications be treated on a fast track basis and without any additional payment.

The internal inquiry must be held and heads must roll.

MUHAMMAD AYUB Karachi