Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb has said registration in connection with health insurance card for the journalists has been started under the directives of Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif.
Health card will be issued on August 07, she said this while addressing a press conference here Monday.
She went on to say PM has allocated one billion rupees in regard to health facilities for the working journalists for the first time in the history of country.
She held it remained always his vision when Shehbaz Sharif was opposition leader and chief minister Punjab and at present when he is PM that there should be arrangement of health insurance for the journalists and artists.
The vision for protection of rights of the journalists was vision of Mian Nawaz Sharif which is being taken along by the incumbent government.
A specific group is launching propaganda against the PEMRA amendment bill.
She indicated amount was earmarked in the present budget for health insurance of the journalists and the responsibility was assigned to ministry of information it should be implemented at ministry level.
She pointed out that Press Information Department (PID) has started registration form process through which registration of working journalists all over the country will be started.
She said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will formally launch the health insurance scheme for journalists on August 07 after completion of this process. .
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb while launching the registration process for the working journalists’ health insurance scheme in Islamabad said all things are included therein through which it will be determined about working journalists that in which institutions they are working. What is their monthly income and what are their domestic expenses.
All journalists should benefit from it as all the facilities have been included in the card and it will be implemented in extremely transparent manner.
She said this scheme is not confined to the journalists of federal capital territory but also to other parts of the country as well.
The Information Minister said under the health insurance scheme, the working journalists will be able to access treatment for various ailments
There has always remained problem about the health insurance, salaries and jobs of the journalists.
She remarked journalists were not slapped during allied government. There ribs were not broken. They were not fired upon and nor the journalists were kidnapped.
What could we do we have done, she said adding more better can be done.
She said we have cancelled the licenses of more than one hundred and fifty dummy newspapers.
It is mentioned in the registration form that write it in the card if you are member of any press club but it is not necessary that only the members of press club will benefit from it, she stated.
