Just days after making the Green Property Certificate mandatory for property transactions, the Punjab government has relaxed the policy by once again allowing the issuance of computerised land record extracts in computerised revenue estates. This development has raised questions about the practical implementation of the new system, the readiness of land records, and the pace of digitisation. The government had made the Green Property Certificate mandatory from July 1 for property sales, transfers, and other land transactions.
According to officials, the system aimed to verify ownership, possession, boundaries, and legal status using modern technology to prevent fake transfers, double sales, and property fraud. However, during implementation, citizens, lawyers, and real estate professionals encountered several difficulties. According to sources, applicants in many areas were unable to obtain the certificate because land records had not yet been fully digitized.
As a result, the Punjab Land Records Authority (PLRA) resumed issuing land record extracts in computerized revenue estates, while no clear policy has yet been announced for non-computerised areas. According to Lahore-based property dealer Mian Ishtiaq Ahmad, incomplete digital land records in many old and suburban revenue estates of Lahore—as well as in Sheikhupura, Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Okara, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, Muzaffargarh, Layyah, Rajanpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Mianwali, Bhakkar, and parts of South Punjab—have forced citizens to make repeated visits to Land Record Centers and revenue offices. Revenue officials say that most objections relate to land boundary demarcation, verification of possession, joint ownership, inheritance disputes, and cases pending before courts.
In many locations, differences between old land records and the current on-ground situation require fresh surveys or corrections to the records, delaying the issuance of Green Property Certificates. Lahore High Court lawyer Rana Sajid Yousaf said that the new system presents greater complications in cases involving joint ownership, inherited properties, mortgaged land, and disputed ownership because an error in the records of even one co-owner can affect the entire transaction. Meanwhile, Ali Raza Butt, Deputy Director of the Punjab Land Records Authority (PLRA), stated that approximately 96 per cent of Punjab's land records have been…
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