‘Fitrana’ fixed at Rs100 per head

Islamabad : The minimum amount of ‘Sadqa e- Fitr’ has been fixed at Rs100 per head this year, said Central Ruet-e- Hilal Committee Chairman Mufti Muneebur Rehman.

In a statement, he said according to the market price of 2.25 kilograms of flour, the amount for ‘Fitrana’ is calculated as Rs100 per head.

The faithful who want to pay ‘Fitrana’ equal to the price of barley, dates, raisins and cheese should pay Rs400, Rs1,600, Rs1,920 and 2,940 per head, respectively. A Muslim, who possesses food in excess of his needs, must pay ‘Sadqa-e-Fitr’ before the Eid prayers. If the person is a bread winner, he should also pay ‘Sadqa-e-Fitr’ for his dependants, such as wife, children, dependent relatives or servants. Mufti Muneeb also advised the people to pay the amount to the poor before Eidul -Fitr so that they could also celebrate the festival.

The most deserving people for ‘Sadqa-e-Fitr’ are close relatives followed by neighbours and the poor. Mufti Munibur Rehman said real spirit of ‘Fitr’ and ‘Fidya’ is two-time meal of a destitute person, so it is better to pay the meal cost of a hotel.

However, those who are wealthier, they should try to pay more to extend assistance to the poor in this time of skyrocketing inflation. If anyone had been unable to keep fast for the whole month of Ramazan, he or she should pay ‘Fidya’ as compensation worth Rs3,000 in proportionate to flour price, Rs12,000 for barley, Rs48,000 for date, Rs57,600 for raisin and Rs88,200 for cheese. ‘Kufara’ (compensation) for leaving 30 fasts in wheat would be Rs6,000, barley Rs24,000, dates Rs96,000, raisin Rs1,15,200 and cheese Rs1,76,400. ‘Kufara’ in wheat would be Rs1,000, barley Rs4,000,dates Rs16,000, raisin Rs19,200 and cheese Rs29,400.