ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed on Thursday directed to shorten the Exit Control List (ECL) and the blacklist as there were 100,000 people on the blacklist.

He said only those suspects embroiled in criminal and anti-state activities should be kept in the list.

“An SMS service is being launched to inform people six months prior to the expiry of their passports,” said the interior minister while talking to media in Islamabad. He said the government also planned to launch new e-passport service on April 28 next year.

The minister said the Pakistanis aspiring to go to the Middle East would be issued passport for ten years. He said home delivery of passports was being started in Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

He said the process of visa issuance to the Chinese nationals working on the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) projects will be made further easy.

The interior minister said he had given ultimatum of one week to the people selling smuggled petrol and diesel. He said if they did not stop this practice, the ministry would take action against them.

Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed expressed commitment to improve financial position of the Directorate of Immigration and Passport.

To a query, he said he did not think that the Pakistan Democratic Movement would tender resignations en bloc.