ISLAMABAD: The government will distribute the relief money from tomorrow among lower-income people who have been hit by the financial crisis due to the ongoing lockdown, Prime Minister Imran Khan told the media on Wednesday.
The premier said that a sum of Rs12,000 will be distributed among 12 million families from 17,000 different points. He insisted that the programme was free of any political influence as the data was collected digitally.
“There is no question of any political affiliation in this fund,” he declared, adding that he wanted everyone to take part in the relief programme initiated by the government and register with the Corona Tigers Relief Force. He said that the government “needed your (public’s) money and manpower” as it was low on resources and had to cater to a large population.
Dr Sania Nishtar, the head of the Ehsaas Programme, told the media that the National Identity Card numbers being sent to the government through text messages on 8171, had passed through several stages so that the government can be sure that they qualify for the programme.
She explained that only one member of a family will receive a message even if multiple members of the family had sent their NIC numbers. The data, Nishtar said, was being cross-checked with the information in Nadra’s database.
She added that those families, whose heads had passed away but their death had not been registered, could call on the 0800-26477 helpline to get assistance.
Prime Minister Imran informed the media that the volunteers of Corona Tigers Relief Force had been instructed to help people who had not been able to send their NIC numbers to register for the emergency cash fund.
National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) Chairman Lt Gen Muhammad Afzal also briefed the media on the medical equipment being bought from other countries — mostly China — and how the supplies had been distributed among provinces and federal territories. NDMA has started distributing ventilators, personal protective equipment and other medical supplies to hospitals in different provinces.
Up to 100,000 additional testing kits will also be flown in soon, he said, adding that as of now 22 testing labs were operating in Pakistan.
Lt Gen Afzal said that normal masks are recommended for the general public, while surgical masks should be worn by anyone working in a hospital. N-95 masks, he said, were recommended for healthcare staff working in intensive care units.
The NDMA chief said that there was a shortage of technicians, but an advertisement had been given out and applications from all over the world were being received.
