NAWABSHAH, May 15: Lack of interest on the part of district administration and red-tapism has put the establishment of a fully-functional women’s crisis centre in doldrums since the last two years.

The project for setting up crisis centres for women was launched by the Federal Women Ministry in Nawabshah, Hyderabad, Sialkot, Abbotabad, Mirpur (Azad Kashmir) Faisalabad, Sibbi, Multan, Mirwala and Bahawalpur with an initial allocation of Rs7.96 million funds for each district.

The objective behind the project was to provide assistance to women in distress. The centres are efficiently providing assistance to women in most of the districts except Nawabshah where work on the project did not move beyond formation of an NGO's management committee and a building on rent.

The district administration received Rs1.75 million funds for the centre and the federal ministry empowered the DCO to recruit staff and purchase furniture for the centre’s offices.

The DCO held tests and interviews for the recruitment of a manager, a legal officer, a social welfare officer, a lady assistant, a maid servant, a cook etc about 10 months ago but did not call them since.

The district officer of the Community Development Department (CDD) Sajan Dahiri who had exercised powers of EDO of CDD for several years said that he had no powers and no knowledge about the project except that a building had been obtained on rent and that the centre’s file was lying with the DCO.

The EDO of agriculture Karim Bux Leghari, who was looking after CDD affairs, said that the NGO management committee’s tenure was over in December after which a new list of 13 members was sent to Islamabad for approval but he did not receive any reply.

He said that a test was conducted for the recruitment of staff for the centre but the process had to be stopped following a call from an official of chief minister to the DCO asking him to stop the process.

He said that he had sent a brief note to the DCO about the recruitment who forwarded it to the high-ups but no progress on the issue had been made yet.

He had heard that additional charge of CDD had been withdrawn from him but he had not received the order in writing.

Qamarun Nisa Dhamrah, who was made chairperson the NGOs’ management committee said that the centre could not be made functional even after two years due to intervention of non elected ruling party members.

She said that crimes against women were on the rise but the ministry could not do anything to mitigate their sufferings. She had written a letter to the ministry asking for furniture and informed it that the selection committee had not yet recruited the staff.

She said that the DCO was least interested in women's problems and their cases were being referred either to Hyderabad or Karachi.

DPO Dr. Ghulam Sarwar Jamali said that the centre should be made functional without delay and a women police station should also be set up in its premises as it would surely need police help.

District Nazim Faryal Talpur said that she had been writing to the DCO time and again about urging him to recruit the staff for the centre and make it functional but to no avail.

DCO Ahmed Bux Khokhar could not be reached for comment despite several attempts.

CLASH: Four men suffered serious injuries in a clash between two groups belonging to Syed and Rind communities in Daur on Tuesday.

The injured Yaseen Rind, Nisar Rind, Saiful Malook and Syed Wilayat Shah were moved to Nawabshah Medical College Hospital.