Punjab has approved the continuation of free computerized birth and death registration certificates for another three years, allocating Rs6.62 billion for the initiative.
According to official documents, the funding will be disbursed in phases: Rs2 billion in the first year, Rs2.20 billion in the second year and Rs2.42 billion in the third year.
The approval was granted by the local government department on the directives of the Punjab chief minister, despite objections raised by the finance department over continuing the subsidy without an impact assessment.
The finance department maintained that several local government institutions could bear the cost of issuing certificates from their own resources.
The local government department countered that birth and death registration is a core state responsibility rather than a revenue-generating function, and should not be treated as such.
Documents show that the free certificate scheme has had a measurable impact on registration rates. Birth registrations rose by 4.84 percent, while death registrations increased by 20.35 percent, following the introduction of the free service.
