LAHORE, Aug 31: The National Database and Registration Authority is installing a system for issuance of machine-readable passports in Los Angeles, Washington and New Delhi shortly.

An official told Dawn on Wednesday that the authority was also working to develop a site at the ministry of foreign affairs.

Nadra was already issuing the MRPs from London, Jeddah and Dubai. The system had been installed in Rome, Toronto and Oslo and handed over to the Immigration and Passport department but it was yet to be made functional, he added.

The department had started issuing the MRPs in October last from Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, Peshawar and Quetta.

At present, the department is issuing the MRPs from Rawalpindi, Larkana, Quetta, Mirpur, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Multan, Muzaffarabad, Bahawalpur, Abotabad, Hyderabad, Faisalabad, D G Khan, Swat, Kohat, Sargodha, Sukkur, D I Khan, Gujrat, Bannu and Peshawar.

Reports say that people have to undergo a tiresome process to obtain their MRPs from these centres. They have to stand in long queues for hours to obtain MRPs, especially at the under-capacity passport offices in Lahore and Karachi.

A new passport office has been set up in the Garden Town, Lahore, to lessen the work load on the main office.

I&P assistant director at Abot Road office Shahid Iqbal said the department had issued 250,000 MRPs during the last one-and-half month across the country.

He said 19,622 MRPs were issued from Lahore (Abot Road), 18,550 from Lahore (Garden Town), 16,295 from Rawalpindi, 2,679 from Larkana, 2,935 from Quetta, 4,493 from Mirpur, 10,259 from Gujranwala, 9,610 from Sialkot, 11,291 from Multan, 3,012 from Muzaffarghar, 6,344 from Bahawalpur, 5,610 from Abotabad, 5,502 from Haiderabad, 12,305 from Faisalabad, 6,767 from DG Khan, 12,588 from Swat, 3,589 from Kohat, 5,649 from Sargodha, 3,728 from Sukkur, 1,317 from G Khan, 16,114 from Gujrat, 2,635 from Bannu, 18,936 from Peshawar, 8,721 from Islamabad, and 46,000 from five Karachi offices.