Govt to spend Rs750m on scholarships

PESHAWAR: Provincial Department of Auqaf, Hajj, Religious and Minority Affairs will spend a sum of Rs750 million on providing scholarships to deserving students under the Rehmatul Lil Alameen scholarship programme in two years.

Arrangements have been made to provide 13,000 scholarships to students this year, including 4500 students from the merged districts.

The department has also completed preparations for handing over dowry funds to 50 families belonging to the minorities and stipend cheques to 500 widows before Christmas.

This was revealed at a meeting of the provincial assembly standing committee on Auqaf, Hajj, Religious and Minorities Affairs here on Wednesday, with acting chairman MPA Ranjeet Singh in the chair.

Orders were also issued to the department to ensure provision of lands for cremation ghats (shamshan ghats) and cemeteries in Peshawar, Dera Ismail Khan, Kohat, Hangu and Bannu within a week.

The department officials briefed the meeting on the decisions taken at the committee previous meeting, lands owned by the Auqaf Department across the province and their illegal occupation, cremation centers for Hindus, Sikh and Christian communities and other related topics.

On the request of Hafiz Hassamuddin, the committee chairman Ranjeet Singh directed the department to provide details to the members in the next meeting about what were the conditions and criteria for sending 32 people for pilgrimage. He also issued directives to summon deputy commissioners of the districts where the minority communities were facing land issues.

The meeting was attended by MPAs Waqar Khan, Mufti Obaidur Rahman and Hafiz Hassamuddin, additional secretary and director admin Auqaf Department, DC Hangu, additional assistant commissioners Peshawar and Bannu besides assistant advocate general.