Eight held over irregularities in Ramazan relief package

Two-member inquiry committee formed to investigate matter

JARANWALA:

The district administration has taken action against officials and retailers involved in irregularities related to the Nigahban Ramazan Package (NRP) 2025.

Four medical officers from the District Health Authority and four union council secretaries have been suspended due to unsatisfactory performance, non-compliance with departmental directives, and a sluggish approach to delivering pay orders to beneficiaries at their doorsteps.

Additionally, 12 First Information Reports (FIRs) have been registered against device retailer agents (DRA) for illegally deducting money from beneficiaries across the district. The Punjab government launched the Ramzan relief package to support low-income families by providing pay orders for purchasing essential food items.

To ensure fair distribution, the district administration formed 1,076 survey teams, consisting of revenue staff, union council secretaries, and medical officers, to collect accurate door-to-door data. As a result, 237,234 eligible beneficiaries were registered—the highest number recorded in Punjab so far.

Authorities disclosed that 225,750 pay orders have been successfully distributed, covering 89% of the total beneficiaries. However, 6,857 pay orders were returned due to various reasons, including 1,659 deaths, unmatched CNIC records, overseas migration, and 234 cases of unverified biometric identification.

Faisalabad Deputy Commissioner Capt (retd) Nadeem Nasir confirmed that disciplinary action was taken against officials responsible for negligence.

Those suspended include medical officers Rehana, M Zeeshan, Iftikhar and M Saleem, along with union council secretaries Asif Manzoor (UC-64), Saeed Ahmad (UC-92), Ashraf Ali (UC-176), and Shaukat Ali (UC-76).

A two-member inquiry committee, comprising the Deputy Director of Local Government and the Chief Executive Officer of the District Health Authority, has been formed to investigate the matter and assign responsibility.

Deputy Commissioner Nasir emphasised that Chief Minister Punjab has a zero-tolerance policy for corruption and is committed to ensuring relief reaches the underprivileged during Ramadan.

Additional Deputy Commissioner General Capt (retd) Tayyib Sami, who is overseeing the NRP, revealed that dozens of retailers have been arrested after video evidence surfaced on social media, exposing them illegally deducting Rs1,000 to Rs500 from beneficiaries.

The district administration registered 12 FIRs under Section 420 of the Pakistan Penal Code against the involved retailers.