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Minister orders to expedite issuing of NICs

by Ananda Kannangara

Interior Minister John Amaratunga yesterday directed the officials of the Department for Registration of Persons to expedite the issuing of National Identity Cards (NICs) using available Departmental resources until a fully fledged computerised system is installed.

Minister Amaratunga made these observations during an inspection he made at the Department at Keppettipola Mawatha in Colombo yesterday. It is also reported that this was the very first occasion a Minister visited the Department since the inception of the institution in 1972. Commissioner Wijaya Ranasinghe conducted the Minister to various divisions in the Department. The Minister also attentively listened to various problems furnished by customers who were at the Department premises.

"Computerising the work of the Department is immensely needed considering the urgency of NICs and the implementation of the project can be easily done with the financial assistance obtained from organisations such as the World Bank and the European Union and also countries like Japan and America rather than asking from the Government which is facing a severe financial crisis at the moment.

Commissioner Ranasinghe said the Department is now focussing its attention towards the providing of NICs to at least 50,000 non NIC holders in the estate sector and the first such program will commence in the Nuwara Eliya District on February 23.

He also said that nearly 8,000 IDs can be issued a day once the computerisation program is implemented.

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