LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Friday launched Pakistan’s first Rahmat Card program in a digital inauguration ceremony, under which financial support will be given to 50,000 widows and orphan children across the province.
According to a briefing by Advisor to CM Punjab on Zakat and Ushr Rashid Nasrullah, a total of Rs 5 billion has been set aside from the provincial Zakat Fund for this initiative.
Under the program, eligible widows and orphan children will receive Rs 100,000 each. The briefing clarified that only Muslim widows and orphan children who qualify for Zakat under Shariah will be included.
It was also stated that government employees, pensioners and Zakat payers who are Sahib-e-Nisab will not be eligible for this support.
Applications for the Rahmat Card can be submitted through a mobile application and the official web portal https://rahmatcard.punjab.gov.pk. A helpline 1077 has also been set up for guidance.
Beneficiaries will be selected from the Punjab Socio-Economic Registry database, while district-wise quotas will be applied for final selection. If applicants are not registered in PSER, their details will be verified through NADRA.
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Financial assistance will be transferred through JazzCash wallet accounts, and the government will cover all service charges related to the wallets on the chief minister’s instructions.
CM Maryam Nawaz directed that transparency, fairness and merit must be strictly followed in the use of Zakat funds under this program.
She said the aim is to provide dignity and financial support to deserving people, adding that the initiative has been launched under the guidance of PML N Quaid Muhammad Nawaz Sharif.
“We want to ensure that no widow or orphan child in Punjab feels helpless or abandoned,” she said, adding that her government believes in public service rather than traditional politics.