ABBOTTABAD, July 9: Residents of Abbottabad are finding it difficult to obtain loans, endorse land transfers or clear their mortgaged properties in the wake of a deadly fire that erupted at the revenue department’s offices last May. Almost 80 per cent of the revenue records of Abbottabad were reduced to ashes following the fire at the department’s main “Mohafiz Khana”. An inquiry committee set up with the aim of re-compiling the records took control of all the documents that could be retrieved from the land revenue officers. But the committee has not completed its work as yet.

The decision of the revenue department to stop the transfer of records is causing a huge financial loss to the national exchequer. It is also causing hindrances to those who want to sell or buy property.

Although the provincial government gave the inquiry committee a month to complete the probe into the fire, the same has not been completed till now.

A large number of residents have asked the government to sort out the issue at the earliest.

They have suggested that the task of computerizing revenue records be given to any IT institute in the government sector as such an institute would be able to complete the assignment both efficiently and cheaply.