DLP Report
PESHAWAR
The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government on Tuesday approved Rs126 million in financial assistance for 167 members of minority communities affected by terrorism after reviewing 173 applications submitted by district scrutiny committees, officials said.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the Assessment Committee of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Minorities Rehabilitation (Victims of Terrorism) Endowment Fund, chaired by Minister for Auqaf, Hajj, Religious and Minority Affairs Sahibzada Muhammad Adnan Qadri, a handout said.
According to the statement, the committee examined cases referred by scrutiny committees in Peshawar, Mardan, Buner and Lower Chitral. Additional Secretary Auqaf and Religious Affairs Habib Khan Afridi told the meeting that all applications had undergone legal scrutiny, verification and departmental review before being placed before the committee.
The approved assistance package covers people injured in terrorist attacks, widows, orphans, unmarried daughters and persons with permanent disabilities from minority communities.
It stated the committee decided that applicants would be eligible for financial assistance under only one category to prevent duplicate payments. It also reviewed seven cases involving permanent disability. While one applicant had submitted the required disability certificate, the remaining six cases were approved in principle, subject to submission and verification of certificates issued by the competent authority.
The meeting also approved Rs4 million in financial assistance for the legal heirs of Jagannath and his wife, who were killed in the recent terrorist attack at Gurdwara Singh Sabha in Mardan.
The district scrutiny committee was directed to complete its report within a week to facilitate the early release of compensation.
Participants said timely assistance to victims of terrorism and their families was the state’s responsibility and noted that the endowment fund was intended to support the rehabilitation of affected minority communities.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Qadri said the provincial government remained committed to protecting the lives, property and constitutional rights of minority communities and would continue providing assistance to families affected by terrorism in accordance with the law.
