KARACHI: The Sindh Assembly was informed on Wednesday that over Rs890 million out of the approved budget of the provincial Zakat fund had been disbursed among the needy people as first instalment during the fiscal year 2018-19.

Furnishing a statement and answering lawmakers’ question during Question Hour session of the provincial assembly, Minister for Auqaf, Zakat and Ushr Faraz Dero said that Rs600m out of Rs1,200m allocated for disbursements of Guzara Allowance was disbursed through Sindh Bank ATM cards of Guzara Allowance.

Besides, he said that medicines worth over Rs164m were distributed in different hospitals approved by the Sindh Zakat Council.

The minister was replying to a question asked by Grand Democratic Alliance’s Arif Mustafa Jatoi about the monthly Zakat disbursement for the current fiscal year.

Responding to a supplementary question, he informed the house that audit of the Sindh Zakat Fund, District Zakat Fund and Local Zakat Fund could not be conducted for several years despite the fact that it was mandatory that it should be conducted every year.

However, he said, that the audit was conducted in some of the districts and added that the auditor general was the competent authority to conduct audit.

“Internal auditors are regularly conducting audit of District Zakat Fund, Local Zakat Funds and institutions receiving assistance out of Zakat fund,” he said.

He further said that auditors were also verifying that money disbursed as Zakat was reaching the needy people and no embezzlement had been reported so far.

The minister said that it was a mandatory requirement under Section-11 of the Sindh Zakat & Ushr Act, 2011, that the auditor general shall conduct annual audit of the Sindh Zakat Fund including the accounts of a deducting agency or an institution receiving Zakat.

Opposition leader Firdous Shamim Naqvi demanded of the chief minister either to remove the minister or the auditor general as they failed to conduct the audit across the province.

Replying to a question of GDA MPA Nusrat Sehar Abbasi regarding delay in construction of a minaret at Dargah Luwari Sharif, district Badin, Mr Dero said that a scheme for construction was being executed by the Auqaf department with an approved cost of Rs22.5m out of which an amount of Rs18.74m was spent on the scheme and around Rs4m was left.

“The work of construction of dispensary and repair of attached units has since be completed, while the work of construction of the minar is at foundation level as the design of piles and pile cap have changed in the light of the report of soil test and time period will be informed after the finalisation of report,” he added.

Besides, the minister said that construction of the boundary wall and other allied facilities at Dargah Saeedi Moosani was approved with an estimated cost of Rs43.008m and it was being executed by the Auqaf department.

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2019