PESHAWAR: Special Assistant to CM on Minority Affairs, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Wazir Zada here Saturday handed over cheques of Rs 10 million as financial support to 273 deserving persons of minorities’ community.

Addressing the cheques distribution ceremony here, he said that the government was well aware of the problems being faced by the minority communities and in this regard, the government had issued cheques of financial assistance to deserving persons.

He further clarified that the present government has taken practical steps to equip all the youth of the minority communities with the education, adding that PTI government during its four-year tenure had not only facilitated communication between the ministers and the people but also the rewards given to the people of the minority communities and made them aware of their rights.

He said that in order to encourage the children of minorities to get higher education, the provincial government on the directives of Chief Minister Mehmood Khan have allocated a hefty amount of Rs 1.45 billion in the budget for minorities, which is a record, he remarked.

He said that the government was also giving Rs 1 million scholarship to minorities youth for PhD, Rs 200,000 for MPhil, Rs 100,000 for MA, MSc, Rs 70,000 for BA, BSc and Rs 50,000 for intermediate. He said that these scholarships are being given at only 45 percent marks, adding that the government was also paying school fee of 1500 children of deserving minorities. Similarly Rs 35,000 being given per annum for missionary teachers, 80,000 marriages grant each to 400 deserving families and Rs 1200 financial support widows.

He said that the government would provide grants to the youth of minority community so that they could run their own business. The present government had fixed five percent quota for minorities in jobs and also giving relaxation in test and interviews for these jobs.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022