HARIPUR: A total of 10,000 women will directly benefit from the government’s Ehsaas Kafalat financial assistance programme in Haripur district, said local MPA Akbar Ayub Khan on Thursday.

After attending an Ehsaas Kafalat Card distribution ceremony at the deputy commissioner’s office here, Mr Akbar said the assistance initiative would help female members of the marginalised families to manage their kitchen in a respectable way.

He said the government had decided about the provision of Rs14,000 stipend to those women every six month without any involvement of their male family members.

The MPA said the government had introduced a transparent registration and verification method for the programme and had registered 2,200 women for it.

Assistant director of the Ehsaas Programme in the district Tariq Mehmood said the women with Ehsaas Kafalat cards would be paid stipend after biometric verification.

He said children of the programme’s beneficiaries would be registered for the Waseela-i-Tahleem initiative after verification.

Mr Mehmood said 70 per cent of school attendance was required for the Waseela-i-Tahleem programme under which quarterly stipend of Rs1,500 would be given away to boys and Rs2,000 to girls at primary level, Rs2,500 to boys and Rs3,000 to girls up to secondary level and Rs3,500 for boys and Rs4,000 for girls at higher secondary level.

He said a survey was under way for the financial support of special persons.

The official said the completion of verification process would lead to the release of money to the selected persons.

Deputy commissioner Mughees Sanaullah and additional deputy commissioner Musarrat Zaman were also present on the occasion.

COUNSELLING CENTRE: The University of Haripur inaugurated a centre for psychological counselling on its premises here on Thursday.

Vice-Chancellor Prof Anwarul Hassan Gilani said the centre would offer services in line with the Higher Education Commission’s policy on drug and tobacco abuse.

“Experts will design and launch research and psychological intervention-based counselling programmes to prevent and control the use of tobacco and drug abuse among students. The services will also be extended to the community level,” he said. The VC said mental health awareness campaigns and events would also be held.

Published in Dawn, March 4th, 2022