The Sindh government today intensified its digital governance drive, collecting Rs12.8 billion in five months through its e-Stamping platform, an initiative Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah described as central to eliminating document fraud and building a more transparent administration.
The push was formalised during a ceremony at CM House where a Master Service Level Agreement was signed between the Board of Revenue Sindh and the Sindh Information Technology Company (SITC) to continue the rollout and expansion of the digital stamping platform.
Chief Minister Shah, addressing the gathering, stated that the technology-driven reform is a core component of a wider strategy to modernise governance. ‘In just five months since SITC took over the system, more than 730,000 challans have been processed and Rs12.8 billion collected through the e-Stamping platform transparently and efficiently,’ he said.
He emphasised that the programme”s significance extends beyond revenue generation, noting its effectiveness in combating long-standing irregularities. ‘The e-Stamping system is helping eliminate the mafia of fake stamp papers, end the practice of backdated documentation and free citizens from standing in long queues outside government offices,’ the chief minister added.
The next phase of the initiative aims to introduce a fully paperless process, allowing citizens to generate stamp documents online from their personal devices. ‘This reform is not simply a technological upgrade – it is about restoring trust between the government and the people of Sindh,’ Mr Shah remarked.
To accelerate this digital transformation, the provincial government has approved a Government-to-Government (G2G) framework. This new arrangement allows departments to engage directly with SITC through service level agreements, bypassing lengthy procurement procedures and speeding up project implementation.
Mr Shah also outlined several forthcoming digital projects being developed by SITC. These include ‘Sindh Pay’, a unified digital payment platform for government taxes and fees, and the establishment of a dedicated provincial data centre to securely host sensitive government and citizen data within Pakistan.
The administration is also exploring the use of artificial intelligence to offer round-the-clock digital assistance to citizens in English, Sindhi, and Urdu regarding public services.
Further reforms are planned for education and public administration, including secure digital verification of university student records to curb fake degrees, digitisation of property tax systems, and paperless issuance of domicile and PRC certificates. ‘The days when citizens had to run from office to office for basic services are coming to an end,’ the chief minister declared.
During the event, SITC CEO Zainul Abdein Shah briefed officials, explaining that the transition to e-Stamping was designed to eliminate fraudulent backdated stamps and revenue leakages. He noted that an AI-based chatbot already provides trilingual support to assist citizens using the platform.
Future plans outlined in the briefing include the development of a ‘Sindh Citizen Super App’, intended to integrate over 130 government services into a single platform.
The agreement was officially signed by Member (RSand EP) Board of Revenue Safdar Ali Bughio and SITC CEO Zainul Abdein Shah, marking a significant step towards establishing a data-driven governance framework in the province.