The Benazir Income Support program (BISP) beneficiaries and their relatives have demanded of the government authorities to increase the payment disbursement points in all the Shangla tehsils as single point in each tehsil are causing severe problems to the women beneficiaries, who come from distant remote villages and spent the whole stipend on the fares.
The Benazir income support program beneficiaries and their relatives who came with them from far off villages of the Bisham tehsil to receive the stipend, complained about the centre which is established at the old tehsil office in Bisham city but always overcrowded as it was the only payment disbursement point for the entire tehsil Bisham with narrow space that forced the women and men to queue on the Karakoram Highway.
Abdul Majeed, a resident of Shang said his wife used to receive the BISP stipend by herself from a nearby shop in his village and won’t pay fares nor he himself had to come with her to the point and wait from morning to evening for their turn that not only causing problems for the women beneficiaries but also for the men came with them and their infants in this scorching weather.
He said receiving of this stipend had become a difficult and disrespectful for the women because of single disbursement point for the entire tehsil as people came from remote towns of the tehsil and paid huge fares by hiring jeeps for their family beneficiaries.
Khaista Khan, an elderly said his infants cried inside with their mothers and hungry but the women compelled to receive their stipend and could not come out of the tehsil office before receiving it.
He claimed the number of payment disbursement machines are just 1 and that took more time in the process of payment disbursement and he urged the Habib Bank to provide more devices and set up centres in every union councils for the beneficiaries ease.
Mohammad Amin, who brought his family from Maira said that he paid half of the whole BISP stipend on fare and came to this point for the second time before it they were receiving the stipend at their doorstep and their local village person used to bring the device to his home and charged Rs 200 which was more convenient and cost adequately to them.
Salima Bibi, a beneficiary came from a remote Losar village said the BISP payment had become a dishonor for them and had to wait in the long queue with children and their men outside the office and got off from their work and police push them in the queues.
She said Rs 300 were being deducted from them in the office who made them the payment but despite that they treated like an animal at the BISP stipend disbursement point.
Sultan Jana, a beneficiary said it would have better the government stop paying them the BISP stipend rather then pushing them to this cruel attitude of the payment disbursement point staff.
Most of beneficiaries and their relatives asked by this correspondent expressed severe anger and disappointment towards the BISP management, local authorities and demanded the government to either send the payment through Easypaisa or establish more centres at each union council of the district for their ease.
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