Ehsaas Rashan programme: When will registration open?

ISLAMABAD: Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Poverty Alleviation and Social Protection Dr Sania Nishtar on Thursday announced that a web portal to register families under the government's new initiative of Ehsaas Rashan will open on November 8.

“Realising the difficulties of the common people amid inflation, the Ehsaas Rashan programme is being launched after thorough planning, including field testing, proof of concept, piloting and technology measures,” the premier's aide said, while addressing a press conference in the capital.

This programme will benefit 20 million families and overall 130 million people nationwide, including those already registered under the Kafalat programme.

The beneficiaries will be identified with the help of the new Ehsaas National Socio Economic Registry (NSER) Survey, said Dr Nishtar.

Benefits, requirements and process

She said the Ehsaas Rashan Programme will provide a subsidy of Rs1,000 per month to each of the 20 million families on the purchase of flour, pulses, ghee or cooking oil.

Those who want to benefit from the programme must have valid mobile numbers registered with their Computerised National Identity Cards (CNIC), she stressed.

Registered buyers will be able to purchase goods from the designated kiryana shops or Utility Stores on 30% subsidy after they are issued Rashan cards.

A list of people eligible to availing the benefit will be displayed within three or four weeks after a scrutinising process with the help of the Ehsaas database, while the kiryana stores will be registered in the meanwhile, she said.

What the kiryana merchants need to do

Ehsaas has developed a digitally enabled mobile point of sale system in collaboration with National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) to serve beneficiaries through a network of kiryana stores all over the country.

Outlining the procedure, Dr Nishtar said that the kiryana merchants will require downloading the relevant app to their Android phones, entering the CNIC numbers of the customers and passing on the benefits after immediate authentication from the back end.

The customer will receive a verification code which would be entered by the kiryana merchant in the app.

“Such a system has been developed which will prevent corruption and abuse,” she said.

Kiryana merchants with a valid bank account to receive the subsidy amount from any part of the country will be eligible to register under this programme after physical verification.

Dr Nishtar said that the government will also give profit to the registered merchants on the subsidy amount to encourage them to serve the maximum number of people.

Who qualifies for the programme?

She said that Ehsaas Rashan will cover 20 million households across Pakistan with a poverty score of less than 39 and an income of Rs31,000 per month.

The premier's aide said that as per the government's estimate, 60% of Pakistan's population will benefit from the programme.

Dr Nishtar said that this is the beginning; as soon as the benefits of the programme are extended to the people, the amount can be increased along with the introduction of more benefits.

She observed that the programme is being launched with a view to mitigate the suffering of people due to inflation which is impacting countries all over the world.

She said that Ehsaas has gathered socio-economic data of 38 million households which has made it easier to launch new programmes.

To a question, Dr Nishtar said that small kiryana stores in rural areas will be encouraged to be a part of this initiative.

“An accelerated drive will be launched for the awareness and education of merchants”, she said.

Are govt employees eligible?

To another question, she explained that government employees having an income of less than Rs31,000 will be eligible to apply for the programme, while those who travel abroad for job purposes would not be excluded as per the cabinet's unanimous decision.

Total subsidy being provided

In response to yet another question, Dr Nishtar said that a subsidy of Rs120 billion is being given under the programme. The provincial governments will contribute 65% while the share of federal government will be 35%.

“Confirmation from Sindh and Balochistan is awaited while other provinces have confirmed," she added.

IMF's reaction

To a question about the reaction of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) over the programme, Dr Nishtar said that Advisor to Prime Minister on Finance Shaukat Tarin is holding discussions with the international money lender in this regard.

“IMF knows that we are transparently implementing this programme to provide relief to the inflation stricken people”, she added.