Karachi gets a new shelter home for poor

Project established under government’s Ehsaas scheme

Afifth shelter home to provide free lodging and boarding facilities to homeless people has been launched in Karachi. Sindh Governor Imran Ismail, accompanied by Managing Director of Pakistan Baitul-Mal, Malik Zaheer Abbas Khokhar, launched the new shelter home (Panah Gah) in the Lyari area.

These shelter homes are being established under the Ehsaas flagship poverty alleviation project of the federal government.

Capacity for 100 persons

The others are in Sohrab Goth, Surjani Town, Orangi, and Korangi localities of Karachi. The new shelter home can accommodate up to 100 people at a time. To avail of this facility, Computerised National Identity Card should be presented. Akhtar Hussain Baloch, in-charge official of the Lyari’s new shelter home, said the facility will also be available to visitors who have no boarding facilities.

A website of the shelter home project of the government says that so far 8,634 people had been provided with free accommodation facilities in Karachi while the scheme has also served 2,84,784 meals so far to the needy people in the city. Speaking on the occasion, the Sindh Governor said the government had been working on the project to expand the network of shelter homes in the country for the benefit of the labourers and daily wage earners.

Bed and food for poor

He said the present government for the first time in the history of Pakistan had unveiled a scheme aimed at ensuring that no poor person should go to bed in the night with an empty stomach.

The Governor appreciated the support provided by non-profit Saylani Welfare Trust to run these free of charge shelter and food facilities. He said these shelter homes were being established in line with the vision of PM Imran Khan to establish a welfare state in accordance with the Islamic principles.

Earlier this year, the Ehsaas Emergency Cash programme was listed among the top four global social protection initiatives by the World Bank.