Protecting the vulnerable: Govt increases BISP stipend

ISLAMABAD: The government has increased the stipend of Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) by Rs 800 per beneficiary per annum. Finance Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, in a statement here, said that the prime minister had been consulted regarding the increase in the stipend. The annual stipend for BISP beneficiaries had been increased from Rs 18,000 to 18,800 per annum in accordance with the increase in CPI during the last year, he added. Ishaq Dar said the decision would contribute to mitigating the effect of inflation on the BISP beneficiaries, as the stipend at the enhanced rate of Rs 4,700 per beneficiary per quarter would be payable with effect from July 1, 2015. The arrears, he said, would be paid along with the next installment.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 14^th, 2016.