CM announces monthly stipends for Imam Masjids

F.P. Report

PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has decided to grant honorarium to prayer leaders (Imam Masjids) across the province from the start of upcoming financial year. Around 22,000 Imam Masajid will be granted monthly honorarium of Rs.10,000 each. The provincial government will spend an amount of approximately 23.00 million rupees per month and an amount of around 2.5 billion rupees per annum on the scheme. It was decided in a meeting of Auqaf Department held here on Monday with Chief Minister Mahmood Khan in the chair.

Besides provincial minister for finance, Taimur Saleem Jhagra, Special Assistant to Chief Minister on Auqaf, Zahoor Shakir and Secretary Auqaf and Religious Affairs, Shahid Sohail, the meeting was attended by other concerned high ups.

Briefing the meeting about the progress made so far on the grant of honorarium to Imam Masajid, it was informed that through district administrations data of all the Imam Masajid in settled districts of the province had been collected for grant of honorarium.

The Chief Minister directed the high ups of the department to expedite work on data collection of Imam Masajid in the newly merged districts as well and to complete all the arrangements to provide honorarium to the Imam Masjid across the province from 1st July 2021.

Talking on this occasion, the Chief Minister said that besides provision of solar energy to all the Masajid and Madaris, the provincial government would fulfill all other requirements of Masajid and Madaris on priority basis.

The meeting was given detailed briefing about reforms initiatives being introduced in the department to strengthen it on modern lines and the proposed business plan to ensure better utilization of the commercial properties of Auqaf across the province and a number of important decisions were taken to this effect.

It was decided in principle to ban further extension in the lease period of commercial properties of the department with the aim to revise the existing rents of these properties and bring them at par with the existing market rates.

The meeting was informed that revision of the existing rate of rents of these properties would increase the provincial government revenue upto thousand percent.

The meeting discussed in detail various measures including digitization of records, synchronization of land record of the department with that of Revenue record, introducing an efficient system of financial management and internal audit and administrative restructuring to ensure good governance, transparency and efficiency in the affairs of the department and improve its overall working capacity.

The Chair directed the high ups of the department for effective measures to remove illegal encroachment on the properties of the department and to expedite work on the computerization/digitization of all the records to enhance the efficiency of the department.