Excelsior Correspondent
Nowshera, Apr 15: As a sequel to efforts of present Government to ensure financial assistance to downtrodden, poor, needy, BPL and other economically weaker sections at their doorsteps, Minister for Social Welfare, ARI and Trainings, Sakina Itoo, distributed Rs.17.34 lakh among 362 beneficiaries including Rs.3.34 lakh under NFBS and Rs.14 lakh under rehabilitation programme here today.
The Minister, who was also the chief guest at the one day awareness camp organised by Rehabilitation Council in collaboration with Social Welfare Department, said that Government is making every possible effort to uplift the backward classes, SC, ST, OBC and other weaker sections of the society.
Sakina said that the main aim and objective of organising such awareness camps is to educate the common people about various welfare schemes launched by the Central and State Governments for their upliftment, so that they can earn their livelihood with honour and dignity. She stressed the people to come forward and take the benefit of these schemes.
The Minister further said that the department has been successful in extending pension benefits to around 5 lakh persons which included 3.53 lakh under ISSS and 1.37 lakh under NSP (IGNOAPS), for which the department is spending Rs. 95 crore annually.
She said that under Kishori Shakti, 47000 adolescent girls were covered for which the department has spent Rs. 52.52 lakh. Besides, for empowering women on gross root level, the Women Development Corporation organised 629 awareness camps including 182 camps during 2012-13 in the State. She said that the Corporation is providing loan assistance to women on easy interest rates, so that they may be able to establish their own income generating units.
The Minister said that marriage assistance to young widows; grown up daughters of militancy hit families at the rate of Rs. 10,000 has been given to 342 families during the last 4 years through Rehabilitation Council. Besides, he said marriage assistance has also been increased from present rate of Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 20,000 as one time assistance.
The Minister said the State Government is going to launch a new scheme under which Rs. 30,000 will be given as marriage assistance to orphan girls. She said that the pension of handicapped and widow pension has already been increased and hoped that it would be further enhanced. She said that 19 gender budgeting training-cum- workshops have been organised through Rehabilitation Council and Women Commission.
Responding to the demands of the Handicapped Association, the Minister assured that their genuine demands would be looked into sympathetically.
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