Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday said that Pakistan’s biggest asset is the country’s youth, adding that we will only be able to reap the benefits of this by empowering and uplifting them.
The premier expressed these views during the formal launch for the Ehsaas undergraduate scholarship programme in Islamabad. Imran also handed scholarship letters to a select few students during the ceremony.
Addressing the ceremony, the premier began his speech by saying that a humane society is one which looks after the interests of the underprivileged. “How can you identify a civilised society? The identity of a civilised society is not determined by how the rich live, it is determined by how the poor live. This is what draws a distinction between a humane society and one that is animalistic.”
Citing the example of Holy Prophet (PBUH), the premier said: “This is what happened in Madina. The state took responsibility for the poor, even though it was weak. They had no means, and no money but they had ehsaas.
“They understood the importance of empowering the poor,” Imran said. Further, the state of Madina also understood the importance of education, he said. “When the Battle of Badr took place, according to the customs at the time, war prisoners would be released for ransom. But the state decided that the prisoners would be released if they taught at least 10 people how to read and write.
This scholarship programme is following that roadmap, he added. “A small portion of our society […] receives proper education, and has access to facilities. Meanwhile, there is a separate education system for the common man which does not allow them to move forward in life.”
