report in The News, Dec 19, 2020
ISLAMABAD: The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Friday sought explanation from the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) for collection fees of over Rs39.2 million for issuing the weapon licences and collecting weapon licence fees without the finance ministry approval.
The PAC meeting, held with Committee Chairman Rana Tanveer Hussain in the chair, examined the audit of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) para for financial year 2019-20.
The audit officials told the PAC that Nadra collected Rs134.5 million in 2018-19 under the head of fee for issuance of computerised weapon licences without the approval of the finance ministry.
The audit officials told the committee that Nadra also deducted Rs39.2 million from the total collected charges without the ministry approval. The PAC chairman ordered for resolving the issue in one month and directed Nadra to refund the amount to the national exchequer.
During the FIA audit para examination, the audit officials told the committee that an FIA welfare fund was established without any rules and regulations and now the investment was being done in the welfare fund.
The committee was informed that Rs50 extra were received from all candidates for taking the NTS tests for the employment purposes, and now the audit department was not allowed to conduct audit of the welfare fund.
PAC member Syed Naveed Qamar asked for details of the total amount in the Welfare fund accounts and remarked that it was an illegal act to collect extra amount from candidates. The interior secretary told the committee that an inquiry had already been ordered and the report would be ready in one month.
DG FIA told the committee that Rs6.2 million was present in the Welfare fund account, and out of it Rs5 million were collected through the NTS. He said the amount was spent on the families of martyred and the FIA employees also donated to the fund. He said the issue had been pointed out, and it would be regularised now.
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/760924-pac-asks-nadra-why-rs39-2m-collected-as-weapon-licence-fee-without-permission
