Directs authorities to double stipends for needy students
Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan has said that no-doubt Zakat is a means of purifying wealth but its transparent and fair distribution is a big challenge to fulfill. He expressed these views while addressing departmental briefing arranged by Secretary Zakat and Ushr Sardar Javed Ayub here on Sunday.
Minister Chaudhry Ali Shan Soni, Principal Secretary Syed Shahid Mohi-ud-Din, Chief Administrator Zakat Sardar Khalid Mehmood Khan were also present in the briefing. Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister said that the department should formulate workable proposals for digitalization of the Zakat distribution system to ensure transparency and accountability. The digitalization of the system, he said, would be instrumental in making it [department] free of political interference.
He termed the dowry fund of Rs 12,000 for poor and orphan girls as a joke and ordered to increase it to Rs 50,000. The PM also took notice of the meagre amount being distributed amongst the needy annually through the local Zakat Committees. “The amount of Rs. 3000 given once in a year is very insufficient and it should be increased to Rs. 8 to 10 thousand”, he said, adding that the amount for widows should be increased to Rs. 15000.
Sardar Tanveer Ilyas also directed the authorities concerned to double the stipends for the needy students and for those enrolled in religious seminaries (madrassas).
