Zubair QURESHI
President Dr Arif Alvi has directed the Water And Power Development Authority (WAPDA) to immediately pay/restore the welfare grant to a retired employee’s special child from the date of its discontinuation. He also ordered the WAPDA to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the officials who are responsible for stopping the welfare grant despite the fact that the grant had been issued for life after fulfilling the required criteria.While accepting a representation of Syed Noor Ali Zaidi (the complainant) against WafaqiMohtasib’s decision, the president said that the delinquent officials caused an embarrassing situation, not only for the family of a retired employee but also for WAPDA by unjustly stopping the welfare grant to a person with disability (PWD) who had been declared unemployable for life and was totally dependent on his parents. He added that WAPDA should contact the Ministry of Human Rights, which had a definite program to teach more than 50 skill sets to PWDs and later link them to possible employers. He stressed that on such issues, it was the responsibility of institutions like WAPDA to guide PWDs, take social responsibility, and ensure that they become employable.
As per details, the complainant had alleged before WafaqiMohtasib that he was a special child of a retired employee of WAPDA, that the Medical Board had declared him unemployable for life and recommended him for WAPDA Welfare Fund (WWF) under the rules. According to him, he was getting the welfare grant regularly until he attained the age of 21 when WAPDA struck his name off from the WAPDA medical treatment book. Feeling aggrieved, he approached WafaqiMohtasib, who passed the order that WAPDA did not commit any maladministration as the complainant was 30 years of age and was not entitled to the free medical facility and welfare grant, as per rules. Feeling aggrieved, the complainant raised the matter with the president by filing a representation against the Mohtasib’s order.
The president in his decision has observed that a few key facts were missed by the WafaqiMohtasib such as the complainant was entitled to the welfare grant. He pointed out that the complainant had been declared by WAPDA’s own Medical Board in 1996 as “Deaf and Dumb by birth” “unemployable for life” and “totally dependent on his parents.” He further observed that the Managing Committee of WWF had sanctioned a welfare grant for life for the complainant in 1996. He also referred to WWF Rules which provided for the provision of welfare grants to special children of WAPDA employees subject to the provision of medical certificates. He added that NADRA had also issued a CNIC to the complainant depicting him as a “person with disability for life”.
The president concluded that the welfare grant was issued to the complainant as per rules and the question as who decided to stop the welfare grant and why needed to be investigated. He rejected the order of WafaqiMohtasib and directed WAPDA to immediately pay the welfare grant to the complainant from the date of discontinuation. He also asked WAPDA to initiate disciplinary proceedings against delinquent officials and report compliance within 30 days to the Mohtasib.
