Govt extending scholarships programme for girls: Dr Sania

Islamabad: Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Poverty Alleviation and Chairperson of Ehsaas Programme, Dr Sania Nishtar Monday said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government was taking all possible steps to provide opportunities to young girls by extending scholarships programme on merit.

''We have started under-graduate scholarship program for females to lessen educational burden from their parents'', she said this in an interview with a private television channel. Ehsaas Programme was continuing unabatedly across the country, she said adding there was no discrimination with anyone in that regard.

The incumbent government, she said had started a number of schemes through Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), to help mitigate the sufferings of the poor families. Replying to a question about adverse affects of coronavirus, she said the poor segment of society had badly affected by lethal wave of virus.

She further stated that PTI government has supported the daily wage workers during the first wave of COVID-19. To another question about poverty graph in Pakistan, she said the government has disbursed an amount of Rs180 billion among the labor class. She informed that a programme has also been launched to provide food to poor segment of society through ‘Lunger Khana’.