PESHAWAR: An owner of a private oil mills distributed food packages comprising five essential items to over 100 families of artists, musicians and folksingers here on Friday amid lockdown that had forced the artists to shut down their private studios and decline offers to perform in the wake of official orders.

The package comprises rice, flour, ghee, gram and lentil sufficient for one month for a family of four to six members.

Haji Habibullah, owner of General Petroleum Lubricants Private Limited, on the call of Hunari Tolana Welfare Society, Peshawar, distributed the food packages to 130 families of deserving artists and musicians in Peshawar. He said the directorate of culture had contacted him a few days ago regarding relief package for the poor artists.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Habibullah said humanitarian organisations, social activists and well-off people should help out deserving segments of the society besides raising awareness among the masses to follow health care instructions against Covid-19.

“I have a plan to extend food packages to other KP districts where deserving artists are living in difficult conditions,” he stated.

Popular folk artist Wagma Bibi said she took a sigh of relief over the move from a private firm owner. She added Chief Minister Mahmood Khan should announce a relief package for the artists and musicians.

Folk artist Ahmad Gul Ustad, Haseena Naz, Gulabkhel Afridi, Wisal Khial and Shaukat Sarhadi were among those who received the packages. Mr Gul said that it was responsibility of the government to help out the artist community.

Folk artist and chief of Tolana society, Rashid Khan, thanked the private firm owner for his generous gesture.

An official of the provincial culture directorate told this scribe that a comprehensive plan was in the pipeline to extend assistance to the deserving artists and folksingers.

Published in Dawn, April 4th, 2020