Punjab property certificate rollout slowed by gaps in land record digitisation

LAHORE: The Punjab government’s new system for property verification has run into implementation problems soon after its launch, as incomplete digitisation and record discrepancies in a number of revenue estates have complicated the issuance of Green Property Certificates required for land transactions.

The certificate was made compulsory from July 1 for property sales, transfers and related dealings. Officials said the mechanism was introduced to confirm ownership, possession, boundaries and legal standing through a technology-based process aimed at curbing bogus transfers, duplicate sales and other forms of property fraud.

But after the requirement came into effect, residents, lawyers and property market participants began encountering difficulties in securing the document. The Punjab Land Records Authority has since resumed issuing computerised land record extracts in computerised revenue estates. No clear policy has yet been announced for areas that are still non-computerised.

Field-level problems emerge

Lahore-based property dealer Mian Ishtiaq Ahmad said many older and suburban revenue estates in Lahore still have incomplete digital records. He said similar issues exist in Sheikhupura, Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Okara, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, Muzaffargarh, Layyah, Rajanpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Mianwali, Bhakkar and parts of South Punjab, forcing citizens to make repeated trips to land record centres and revenue offices.

Revenue officials said the main objections being raised concern demarcation of land boundaries, confirmation of possession, joint ownership, inheritance-related disagreements and matters pending before courts. In several places, differences between older official entries and the present position on the ground have made new surveys or record corrections necessary before certificates can be issued.

Lahore High Court lawyer Rana Sajid Yousaf said the system becomes especially difficult in transactions involving co-owned property, inherited land, mortgaged assets and ownership disputes. He said a mistake in the record of even one co-owner can hold up the entire process.

Officials defend the system, cite ongoing work

Ali Raza Butt, Deputy Director of the Punjab Land Records Authority, said around 96 per cent of land records in the province have been digitised and the remaining four per cent is still pending because of historical and administrative complications. He said most of the non-digitised revenue estates are in places where ownership conflicts or longstanding record problems exist, and work on digitisation is continuing.

Butt said the aim of the Green Property Certificate is to provide people with properties whose ownership, boundaries, possession and legal status have been fully verified. He added that where inconsistencies are found in the records, the certificate will be issued only after the needed corrections are completed.

Survey and correction demands raised

Shahid Ansar Goraya, president of the Patwari Association Punjab, said the province has not carried out a comprehensive land settlement survey for 125 years. He argued that mistakes made during data entry when digitisation began in 2007 have deepened existing complications in the record system.

Attributing the difficulties to structural issues in the land database, Goraya said some districts still face problems including indivisible land records, several properties entered under a single survey number and outdated boundary markings. He said a durable remedy would require a province-wide resurvey, rectification of land records and updated urban boundary demarcation.

Experts view the Green Property Certificate as a potentially important move toward more transparent land administration, but say its effectiveness will depend on complete and accurate digital records, proper field verification, modern boundary surveys and a uniform phased rollout across Punjab.