Dubai: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has launched a unique project of providing cash assistance to workers especially daily wagers who lost jobs due to prolonged lockdown in the country.
He launched a dedicated online portal for individuals who were rendered jobless due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions and vowed that every registered jobless person would get the assistance. As everyone cannot register online due to illiteracy, a registration desk at Union councils will be allotted to volunteers of Tigers Force to enroll these daily wagers who need help. Every individual who lost job will get Rs12,000 cas assistance under Ehasas (care) programme. They need to register on https://ehsaas.nadra.gov.pk/.
Sustaining lockdown
During the launching ceremony of the portal, Prime Minister Imran reiterated that the country could not sustain a prolonged lockdown as labourers and the daily wagers were suffering.
“The entire world is trying to restart its economy. Places like New York where thousands are dying have also decided to reopen their industries,” he noted.
He further said that even the rich governments are reopening and easing lockdowns because they realise they cannot keep the country under lockdown for long.
The prime minister said the main aim of his government was to make sure the people of the country were not burdened.
Petrol prices reduced
“This is why we brought down petrol prices by Rs30. Earlier we brought the price of diesel down by Rs27. Even India does not have these low prices,” he said. He added that since the price of petrol was slashed, prices of everything should fall as well. He said he had directed the chief secretaries of all provinces to ensure reduction in the prices of all the commodities associated with oil prices to provide maximum relief to the masses, Geo Tv reported
He also thanked everyone who had donated to the Corona Relief Fund, saying that he himself was monitoring the Fund and its resources.
Observe discipline
At the same time, the prime minister urged the nation to observe discipline to face the challenge and stressed upon observance of social distancing and other precautionary measures. He said nobody could predict how long the coronavirus crisis would last, but it seemed they would have to live with it at least for next six months or a year.
“The public needs to work with the government to combat the virus. They [public] need to take precautionary measures. If I had tested positive, it would have been my responsibility to make sure I self-isolated and quarantined.”
“we can’t depend on speculation about duration of COVID-19. It is crucial that people act smartly by following precautionary measures laid out by the government. So as to secure themselves accordingly by social distancing & self quarantine respectively,” tweeted Prime Minister’s office.
440 COVID-19 deaths
Confirmed coronavirus cases in the country have risen to 19103 with 440 deaths and 4817 recoveries.
“The public needs to play its part in this fight against coronavirus,” PM Imran said. “The more discipline we are the more easily we would be able to defeat it. The public needs to practice social distancing on their own. We cannot force them to do anything.” He also ensured the people of transprancy in spending the relief fund.
Incentives for industries
Prime Minister Imran said the government had made every effort to give major incentives to the construction industry because it provided jobs to a large number of people, including daily wagers.
He also requested the people who had been diagnosed with Covid-19 to go into quarantine in their houses as all infected patients did not require to be taken to hospitals.
Dr Sania Nishtar, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Social Protection and Poverty Alleviation, explained the registration process for the jobless people. She said that applications would be accepted only through the web portal. She said under the Ehsaas Programme, the government had already disbursed Rs81 billion among 6.8 families in just 23 days.
