LAHORE – The Punjab government on Thursday crossed a major milestone in the Chief Minister’s Honorarium Scheme for mosque imams by disbursing more than Rs1 billion to beneficiaries within just 10 days.
Home Secretary Dr Ahmed Javed Qazi said special desks have been set up at Assistant Commissioners’ offices across the province to facilitate the monthly distribution of a Rs25,000 honorarium to registered mosque imams.
He added that more than 68,000 imams across Punjab have voluntarily completed their registration so far.
The provincial government is expected to spend over Rs20 billion annually under the scheme.
According to Dr Qazi, a total of Rs1.11 billion has already been paid to imams under the scheme.
On the directives of CM Punjab, the honorarium payments for January are being made through pay orders while from February onwards, the payments would be issued through a special honorarium card.
The Home Secretary said the process was designed to be simple, transparent and in line with modern standards, ensuring that the dignity and respect of mosque imams were fully maintained during disbursement.
He further stated that the registration process for the programme is underway and that imams can voluntarily register at their nearest Assistant Commissioner’s office.
