ISLAMABAD, Sept 2: The cost of the machine-readable passports project was revised by the interior ministry from Rs500 million earlier quoted by National Database Registration Authority to $20 million, translating to over a billion rupees, a source in the ministry told this correspondent on Tuesday.

The official said earlier the project was being executed by Nadra but now six companies, including five foreign firms were participating the in the bidding of the project.

Citing high-tech skill requirements, he said it would be “quite difficult for the local firms to compete.”

Meanwhile, another interior ministry official said that the directorate of immigration and passport would start issuing machine-readable passports by 2004.

The official said the government had earlier allocated Rs500 million for the project for the current fiscal year, adding that the project had been launched without any foreign aid.

The government, he said, had avoided seeking foreign assistance in this regard as it wanted to maintain secrecy of the project.

He said the government will have to allocate more funds for the next fiscal year as major expenditure would be required the next year.

Referring to the upward revision of the project’s cost, the official expressed the hope that the cost would not be revised any further.