Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Social Welfare, Senator Dr. Sania Nishtar has clarified that the Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) has not been renamed.
During Question Hour in the Upper House on Thursday, Dr. Sania Nishtar said that Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) was established under the BISP Act and it still exists today with its name unchanged. Only the photographs of public figures have been removed from the program by order of the court, she added.
The SAPM also said that a new program has been launched to replace Benazir Debit Card which will provide assistance through biometrics. Dr Sania Nishtar further said that the government has launched Ehsaas Kifalat, Ehsaas Wasila Education, Ehsaas Emergency Cash Program and Ehsaas Development Program for the welfare of the public while the Waseela Education Program has been digitized.
She said that the scope of Waseela Education Program has been expanded from 50 to 150 districts to eradicate corruption, while its operational cost has been reduced from 8% to 3%. “We have also scrapped the outsourcing model because it used to award huge contracts to NGOs”, she said.
