File photo courtesy UNICEF—Sami Malik
The Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) on Sunday announced it has thus far disbursed Rs. 23.1 billion in cash handouts to victims of this year’s floods across Pakistan, as the government announced it will unveil a Digital Flood Dashboard to boost transparency in allocation of relief funds.
In a statement, the BISP said 81 percent of all identified beneficiaries had received emergency cash assistance of Rs. 25,000 for each flood-affected family, as announced by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif last month. Initially allocated at Rs. 28 billion, the amount was increased to Rs. 70 billion last week, as estimates of total losses mounted.
According to the BISP, it has already disbursed Rs. 23.1 billion among 924,063 families from flood-hit areas. “So far, 81.37 percent of the total identified beneficiaries have been served through 377 special campsites established across flood-affected regions,” it said. “Till Sunday evening, 112,485 families have received Rs. 2.812 billion in Balochistan; 550,235 families got Rs. 13.755 billion in Sindh; 114,077 families were paid Rs. 2.852 billion in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and 147,266 families received Rs. 3.681 billion in Punjab,” it added.
The organization emphasized that its senior management was closely monitoring the disbursement process, and ensuring that staff had been deployed to all campsites dedicated for the speedy distribution of cash to victims.
The BISP reiterated that any affected families who had not yet received compensation should send their computerized national identity card (CNIC) number to 8171 for registration in the Flood Relief Cash Assistance program, adding that upon receiving a confirmation message, they could visit a nearby campsite to receive their payment.
Digital transparency
Separately, the federal government announced it was launching a Digital Flood Dashboard to ensure transparency in the allocation of relief funds for flood victims, noting this would enable the public to directly check how the funds were being utilized for relief measures by the authorities concerned.
The dashboard would be formally launched by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal today (Monday) on the directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, it said, adding the aim was to directly inform the general public about the financial support and relief goods being received and distributed among the flood-affected people of the country. The prime minister would personally supervise the digital dashboard, it added.
Sharif, last week, also announced that the auditor general of Pakistan and a reputable auditing firm would conduct and make public an audit of the financial aid received for flood victims.
According to the Prime Minister’s Office, he personally reviewed measures aimed at restoring normal life in flood-affected areas over the weekend, and directed authorities to expedite the rehabilitation of roads, bridges and power supply. He also directed for authorities to ensure the provision of basic necessities, including food, in all affected areas.
Indus River
Also on Sunday, the Sindh government announced it was making cuts at three points on the Indus Highway in Dadu district to divert floodwaters toward the Indus River and prevent flooding in its main city. The threat to Dadu has been rising as an additional 70 villages in the union councils of Pir Shahnawaz, Yar Muhamamd Kalhoro and Khudabad were inundated on Sunday. The planned cuts, the government has warned, would likely inundate another 20 villages, and has directed residents to evacuate.
The move has provoked protests from residents of the impacted villages, who have questioned why the government did not give them more time to evacuate and protect their livelihoods before making the decision to make the cuts.