CHAIRING a meeting, Prime Minister Imran Khan said taking undue advantage of the subsidy system by the undeserving people is a waste of state resources and the deserving people’s rights as he called for a roadmap for ensuring subsidies reach the intended target.
One fully agrees with the Prime Minister’s assertions and efficient use of resources also demand that the subsidies must only reach the weaker sections of the society but the regrettable part is that over the years no such system has been developed to deliver the targeted subsidies to those need them the most. It is regardless of the fact that the database of NADRA could be used to achieve the objective. Over the years it has been seen that the government is giving subsidies to the consumers especially on power tariff but its beneficiaries range from bottom to the top strata of society. Indeed our country is already faced with serious economic challenges and it cannot afford such state of affairs for a long time. Therefore, it has become imperative that such a system is developed that the subsidies are only used to improve the lot of poor people. It is really heartening to see that the focus of Prime Minister Imran Khan is to uplift the poor segments of the society. For this purpose, the country’s most comprehensive social safety net Ehsaas has also been started. Under this program, cash assistance is quarterly provided to the deserving families. In our view, these are the families which also deserve subsidies on gas and power bills as well as food items through the Utility Stores Corporation. Since the Covid-19 has badly affected the income of hundreds of thousands of households across the country by rendering the people jobless. This situation warrants that a new poverty survey is also conducted so that no deserving family is left out of Ehsaas Program. At the same time, the price hike has also badly affected the fixed income groups especially the salaried class which are finding it difficult to meet their daily expenses. They should be extended relief by increasing their salaries.
