Lamination Paper Shortage Leaves Pakistanis Waiting on Passports” Report
Thousands of Pakistanis waiting for their new passports to fly abroad for study, work and leisure, reason an unusual obstacle-shortage of lamination papers.
The south Asian country is grappling with a severe scarcity of lamination paper, resulting in a nationwide shortage of the crucial travel document. This shortage is causing significant challenges for thousands of individuals who need passports for purposes such as study, work, or leisure travel, and there seems to be no immediate resolution in sight, according to a report by the Express Tribune.
The situation has left many students stranded at home, despite having approved visas to pursue degrees in countries like Italy or United Kingdom, as they await the arrival of their passports. The prolonged wait is raising concerns that these aspiring individuals may miss out on valuable opportunities, potentially derailing their academic and career aspirations.
One student, Hira, lamented, “My student visa for Italy was recently approved, and I had to be in the country in October. However, the unavailability of a passport robbed me of an opportunity to leave.”
The country, which imports lamination paper from France, previously faced a similar delay in passport printing in 2013. This delay was attributed to the Directorate General of Immigration & Passports (DGI&P) owing money to printers and a shortage of lamination papers.
Qadir Yar Tiwana, the Director General for Media of the Ministry of Interior, assured that the government is actively working to resolve the crisis promptly. “The situation will soon be under control, and passport issuance will continue as normal,” Tiwana stated.
However, residents have expressed frustration, stating that although they received messages from the DGI&P indicating that their passports were ready for pickup, they were turned away upon reaching the passport office. Muhammad Imran, a resident of Peshawar, voiced his concerns, saying, “Ever since September, the passport office has been stating that your passport will come next week, but multiple weeks have passed, and they keep repeating the same.”
Reports suggest that passport offices in Pakistani cities are uncertain about when the process will fully restart. A senior officer from the Peshawar passport office mentioned that they can currently process only 12 to 13 passports per day, compared to the previous capacity of 3,000 to 4,000 passports per day. The estimated wait time for resolution is another month or two, according to their best estimate.
