Minister of State for Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety Faisal Karim Kundi on Monday directed for ensuring the provision of all possible facilities to the beneficiaries at payment centers of Benazir Income Support Program (BISP). He issued these directions during his visit to different payment centers of BISP in Dera Ismail Khan.
On this occasion, the state minister was accompanied by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) District President Malik Farhan Afzal Dhap, Tehsil General Secretary Malik Khizer Hayat, Tehsil Information Secretary Haji Sooba Khan and others. He listened to the issues and difficulties being faced by the beneficiary women at these payment centers and directed the on-duty staff to take steps for immediate resolution of the problems being faced by the deserving people.
He warned that no negligence would be tolerated in ensuring smooth payments to the beneficiary women. The state minister said that on the special instructions of PPP Chairman and Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, this time the aid amount has been increased from Rs 8,500 to Rs 9,000. Similarly, he said, educational scholarships worth Rs 17 billion were being given under the Waseela-e-Taleem programme. The stipend amount for the children of deserving women has also been increased. The female student would be given Rs 2,500 and the male student would be provided Rs 2,000 stipend amount.
Faisal Kundi said the cards of 7,000 women in Dera Ismail Khan which were closed during the previous tenure had been restored. “I believe in practical steps rather than false promises,” he said. He said an amount of Rs 1.37 billion was being distributed among 150,000 deserving women of Dera Ismail Khan. He said the government was making an effort to make these deserving people self-reliant in the future so that they could play their role in the betterment of the country’s economy instead of taking aid.
He acknowledged the BISP staff for working in severe weather conditions. The beneficiary women present there said they were grateful to BISP and Minister of State Faisal Karim Kundi.
