The national identity cards having minor errors can be fixed easily as the Election Commission has taken an initiative to install advanced card management software for removing hassles in availing of NID card-related services by people, said EC officials.

Silly and minor errors can be corrected at Upazila-level EC offices, while critical ones at the central NID office in Dhaka, and the correction of supper critical errors will require permission from an EC meeting, they said, the UNB reported.

Now all types of errors are being corrected centrally in Dhaka.

To ease public sufferings, the Commission has taken the initiative to install advanced card management software and give specific timeframe for the officials concerned to provide the NID services, said the EC officials.

Director General of the National Identity Registration Wing Brig Gen Saidul Islam said the NID server is being upgraded with the most sophisticated one in Bangladesh. “We expect there’ll be rapid development in the (NID) card management system within the next two months,” he said.

The NID DG said the printing of smart NID cards is being controlled centrally in Dhaka, while that of laminated cards in the district headquarters.

“Now we’re thinking to delegate the authority of printing laminated cards to EC upazila-level offices,” he said adding that the card management software will be installed at all the district and upazila-level offices to deliver better services to people.

Besides, the Commission is also categorising the NID-related errors into four types –-a) silly, b) minor c) critical d) supper critical-- to ease the sufferings of service-takers in the case of minor mistakes.

The silly and minor errors can be corrected at the Upazila-level, while critical ones at the central NID office in Dhaka and the correction of supper critical errors will require the permission from the Election Commission’s meeting, the NID DG told UNB.

The EC has already issued a gazette notification over categorising the errors into four types with a view to reducing the sufferings of the service recipients, he said.

The Commission is also taking measures to prevent NID-related irregularities changing passwords and security features for having access to countrywide NID servers, and even laptops used in rendering NID services.

“Every time one time password (OTP) and fingerprint will require for the EC officials to enter the NID server,” said the NID Wing Director General.

The EC’s move came in the wake of recent alleged inclusion of Rohingyas in the country’s voter list.

To keep Rohingyas out of the electoral rolls, the commission is strengthening the monitoring system to watch about its officials, technicians, data-entry operator and other staff engaged in the voter registration process, said EC officials.

The Central NID Office is now being reorganised and upazila offices are being strengthened by increasing manpower to render better services, they said.

The EC has already procured an advance server having 100-terabyte data storage capacity.

The Commission introduced the laminated NID cards for the voters of the country following the first preparation of the electoral roll with photographs in 2007.

In 2016, the EC started the distribution smart NID cards instead of laminated ones to the voters, but over 104 million voters are yet to get the smart cards.