Over 600 government employees in Matiari, Sindh, have been found indirectly receiving financial aid from the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) through their spouses, officials revealed.
The District Accounts Office identified 607 employees across multiple departments including police, revenue, irrigation, health, WAPDA, and SCARP whose family members were benefiting from the poverty relief initiative.
The matter surfaced after a letter was circulated to all Accountant General (AG) offices three months ago, pointing out that relatives of government employees were among BISP beneficiaries. The communication listed the departments involved and directed authorities to take necessary action.
In response, officials launched recovery measures, leading to deductions from the salaries of the employees concerned.
According to recovery details, Rs729,028 was retrieved from 45 SCARP employees, while Rs252,300 was deducted from 15 staff members of the Deputy Commissioner’s Office. Similarly, Rs685,747 was recovered from 42 Irrigation Department employees, Rs224,325 from 14 employees under Executive Engineers, and Rs694,980 from 17 Education Department workers.
Officials noted that deductions typically ranged between Rs10,000 and Rs20,000 per employee, with total recoveries reaching hundreds of thousands of rupees.
The action followed a verification process that cross-checked beneficiary data with government employment records and NADRA, uncovering that several serving public employees’ households had improperly availed benefits meant for low-income families.
Authorities said the crackdown is intended to ensure that only eligible individuals receive financial support. Investigations are ongoing, and further action is expected against those violating the programme’s criteria.
BISP Kafalat initiative
Recently, the government announced an increase in payments under the Benazir Income Support Programme educational stipends.
BISP said on its official Facebook page that the quarterly assistance for women registered under the Benazir Kafalat Programme has gone up from Rs13,500 to Rs14,500.
Stipends under the Benazir Nashonuma Programme have increased by Rs500 per child.
Payments under the Benazir Taleemi Wazaif programme have also gone up by Rs500 per student.
BISP said these steps aim to support poor families and improve children’s education and health across the country.
The programme was launched in 2008. It is the largest cash transfer programme in Pakistan’s history. It has both short-term and long-term goals.
The short term goal of BISP is to protect poor people from the effects of inflation, food shortages and slow economic growth.
The long term goal of the program is to reduce extreme poverty. And support women’s empowerment in line with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Earlier, chairperson of the BISP, Rubina Khalid, shared good news with beneficiaries. She said that from the next quarter, payments will be made under a new “digital wallet” system.
Also read: Govt increases BISP quarterly payment by Rs5,000: check here
