LAHORE: The Punjab Home Department has introduced a modern digital system for licensed arms dealers across the province, in a step aimed at bringing every firearm and every round of ammunition held in commercial stock onto a single, government-monitored online record.
According to an official statement issued by the spokesperson for the Punjab Home Department, the initiative is being carried out in implementation of the Chief Minister of Punjab’s vision of an “illegal weapons-free, safe Punjab.”
To familiarise the trade with the new requirements, a training workshop on digital inventory was held on the Punjab Arms License Portal. More than 350 arms dealers from across Punjab attended the session, while dealers also joined online from all Deputy Commissioner offices — a hybrid arrangement that allowed participation from districts far outside the provincial capital.
The spokesperson stated in the press release that Additional Secretary (Judicial) Abdul Rauf and Deputy Secretary (Judicial) Muhammad Murtaza, along with officials of NADRA, provided training to the dealers on the use of the online portal and on the entry of digital inventory.
During the workshop, the procedure for entering all particulars on the Punjab Arms License Portal was explained in detail, and dealers were directed to ensure the complete registration of their existing stock.
On the request of the arms dealers themselves, the Punjab Home Department has granted an additional 10 days for the entry of all details on the online portal. A deadline of 6 September 2026 has been fixed for the registration of dealers’ existing stock as well as their purchase and sale records.
All arms dealers will be bound to enter their complete stock and the record of every kind of purchase and sale on the online portal by the stipulated date.
Under the new system, a complete record of all guns and bullets held by every arms dealer will be available on the Home Department’s online portal, while the record of purchases and sales will also be maintained online.
The spokesperson said that of a total of 413 registered arms dealers in the province, 230 dealers have already entered their particulars on the digital inventory. All Deputy Commissioners are extending assistance to arms dealers in their respective districts in completing the digital inventory entry.
The spokesperson for the Punjab Home Department said the purpose of the online registration of arms stock and sale-purchase activity is the elimination of crime from Punjab and the uprooting of the illegal buying and selling of weapons.
The measure is significant for a province where the traceability of legally sold weapons has long been a challenge for investigators. A searchable, centralised record of dealer stock creates an audit trail linking a firearm to the point of sale — closing gaps that have historically allowed weapons to slip from the licensed market into unlicensed hands.
The spokesperson made clear that action will be taken in accordance with the law against arms dealers who fail to upload their inventory. Dealers who do not complete registration on the online portal may face suspension of their licences, sealing of their business premises, and the imposition of fines.
At the training workshop, arms dealers appreciated the efforts of the Punjab Home Department and the holding of the session, and requested that such training activities be continued.
For the roughly 180 dealers still outside the system, the coming days will be decisive. With Deputy Commissioners tasked to assist and the deadline now firm at 6 September, the province’s licensed arms trade is set to become one of the more closely documented commercial sectors in Punjab.
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