PESHAWAR: In a positive move, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government has made the decision to open bank accounts for prisoners across the province. The recently released Welfare Fund Rules 2023 by the KP home ministry state that prisoners will now have their own personal bank accounts to support their families.
Negotiations are currently in progress with the Bank of Khyber (BoK) for the establishment of these accounts, as mentioned in the official statement. The government outlined a distribution plan where 10% of the prisoners’ income will go to the government, 30% to the prisoners themselves, and 60% to the Welfare Fund.
Additionally, prisoners will be permitted to engage in various activities such as carpet making, furniture crafting, PCO operations, and canteen services. This initiative aims to improve the living conditions of prisoners, with a particular focus on the well-being of children, women, and destitute/resourceless inmates, as emphasized by Wafaqi Mohtasib Ejaz Ahmed Qureshi during a meeting on Prison Reforms. The meeting focused on reviewing and implementing recommendations outlined in the Report on Prisons.
