Sindh Non-Muslim Welfare Committee reconstituted with more members

The Sindh government reconstituted the Sindh Non-Muslim Welfare Committee on Tuesday to induct a few new leaders from various minorites communities.

As per a notification issued recently by the minorities affairs department, in supersession of the previous notification and with the approval of the chief minister, the committee would now comprise 20 members representing different religious communities.

The committee is headed by Giyan Chand Essarani, the minister for minorities’ affairs, who replaced Hari Ram Kishori Lal in the recent reshuffle of the Sindh cabinet. Lal is now a member of the committee.

The other members include Excise and Taxation Minister Mukesh Kumar Chawla,, MPA Dr Lal Chand Ukrani, MNA Mahesh Kumar Malani, MNA Ramesh Lal, MPA Rana Hamir Singh, Senator Engineer Ghayan Chand and Senator Krishna Kumari,

Special Assistants to Sindh Chief Minister Dr Khatu Mal Jeewan, Surender Vilasai, Punjo Mal Bheel and Lal Chand Ukrani have also been included in the committee. Senator Anwar Lal Dean and MPA Anthony Naveed have been given representation from the Christian community.

Sardar Ramesh Singh, a leader of the Pakistan Sikh Council, and Tushanamaity Patil, a social activist from the Parsi community, are also members of the committee along with Kamla Bai and Mukhi Odha Mal.

The minorities affairs secretary is a member and the convener of the committee. The Hyderabad minority affairs director is its another member.

The main objective of the committee is to resolve the issues of religious minorities and endorse the administrative approval for repair, renovation and maintenance of worship places of non-Muslim communities.

Meanwhile, Essarani visited on Saturday the Shri Anandpur Temple in Clifton and inspected the ongoing development work there.

During the visit, the minorities affairs minister directed Sindh Minority Affairs Director Abdul Shakoor Abro to expedite the pace of work at the temple and pay special attention to its quality.

Essarani said the welfare of the minorities was one of the priorities of the Sindh government and the Pakistan Peoples Party had always taken practical steps to ensure the rights of the minorities.

He added that development work of religious places of worship, scholarships and financial assistance would be approved on the recommendation of the Sindh Non-Muslim Welfare Committee on merit. He maintained that the Hindu, Christian, Scheduled Caste, Sikh and Parsi communities had been given full representation in the committee.