GUJRAT: Serious kind of malpractices have been detected at the Arazi Record Centers (ARCs) across Punjab by the police special branch during a survey ordered by the provincial government.

The SB report has identified flaws in the working of the district level ARCs under the direct control of the Punjab Land Record Authority (PLRA).

Sources say Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar has asked the Senior Member Board of Revenue (SMBR) to thoroughly examine contents of the SB report and evaluate the performance and working of PLRA and ARCs and suggest remedial measures.

CM asks BoR to look into working of PLRA

In a notifcation issued by the chief minister office on July 18 (Thursday), the SMBR has been directed to ensure strict disciplinary action in accordance with the law against those involved in the malpractices and corruption in PLRA and ARCs.

It further asked the SMBR to submit a summary to the chief minister office with recommendations to improve its working and curb reported malpractices.

The BOR has already serious reservations over the entire set-up and working of the PLRA, hiring of staff by PLRA and budgetary expenditures.

Earlier, in the last fiscal year, the SMBR had blocked the release of budget to the PLRA and raised different questions about the expenditures and previous budgets due to which the salaries of the entire PLRA were withheld in December last year.An assistant director land record (ADLR) posted in a district said that the entire staff of the PLRA, particularly those working at the ARCs, were unaware of their future career and they did not know under which parent department they had been working.

He said that he had joined the authority four years ago and five years contract of his job was about to complete but nobody at the government institutions would own them neither the district administration’s land revenue department nor the BoR. He said he PLRA had so far failed in getting approved the service structure of its staff.

“So keeping in view such a critical situation, the working of staff will definitely suffer and lead to corruption and malpractices on the part of staff,” he said on condition of not to be named. He urged the authorities concerned to chalk out a comprehensive plan for improvement in the working of the PLRA staff.

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2019