Ration scheme for 1 million deserving people on the cards

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Social Security and Poverty Alleviation and Chairperson Ehsaas Programme Dr Sania Nishter has said the government would introduce a new ration card to provide nutritious food to one million deserving people.

Addressing a presser, she said infants less than two years of age and vulnerable pregnant and lactating women would get special nutritious food to avoid stunting.

Under the ambitious Ehsaas Programme, Dr Nishtar said, 80,000 deserving poor would be given interest-free loans, sewing machines, cattle, and retail shop provisions to start own business.

She said the government is increasing social security and poverty alleviation budget for forthcoming fiscal year.

She said as many as 6 million women identified transparently through the ongoing Socio Economic Registry Survey would get stipend in their saving accounts and their access to cell phones will be increased. 500 Kifalat Centres would provide online access to free courses to poor women and their children, she added.

They would have also access to free school lessons, free IT courses, free adult education and certificate courses in stitching, kitchen gardening, electrician and plumbing courses.

The PM aide said the government has decided to provide free wheel chairs to all disabled persons, free hearing aids to the deaf, free white canes to blind under Ehsaas Programme.

Differently-abled person registered with National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) would be provided Insaf cards for free treatment to self and family up to Rs 720,000 from registered hospitals, she said, adding, that two percent disabled quota has been reserved in government jobs.