Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Shelter Homes (Panahgah) Naseem ur Rehman on Tuesday said shelter homes have revived centuries old heritage of Mughal era that was helping to provide quality shelter to the neglected segments of the society including labourers, tourists and travellers without any discrimination.
He explained that most people were visiting from far-flung areas of the country in Islamabad in search of jobs and study but due to the expensive rate of hotels they were not able to get affordable places but under Ehsaas Panaghas government would facilitate them by providing them quality shelter and best food services.
In an interview with APP, he said shelter homes programme is not only a charity, but also helping to reduce poverty which is the act of justice as the provision of shelter and food is the basic right of every person.
The Panahgah programme was initiated in December 2018 to provide free accommodation and food facilities to poor people and daily earners, to materialise Prime Minister Imran Khan’s vision of transforming the country into Madina-like state where all the citizens irrespective of their caste, religion, race and social status are treated equally.
Prime Minister Imran Khan during a visit noted that the people were sleeping on roadside and in public parks. Panahgahs are connecting places, “we connect those who need help with those who want help,” Naseem said.
He said on the direction of Prime Minister, the work on the establishment of Panahgahs was immediately initiated and now the programme is getting momentum with each passing day. To a query, Naseem said living in Panahgahs, the migrant workers would safe Rs 7,000 per month that obviously provided him an opportunity to directly spend the hard earned money on his family welfare.
He said the Panahgah’s advisory council has been set up to manage the funding and supervise the Panahgah affairs.
He said in collaboration of Serena Hotels Pakistan has conducted five days long special training programs for ‘Panahgah’s staff’ and occupants on hospitality, food safety and hygiene, health safety and environment, and housekeeping in the federal capital.
Highlighting the scope of Panahgahs, he said that at present 23 Panahgahs were operational throughout the country under the Ehsaas Programme of Prime Minister; each Panahgah is having capacity for 100 person’s night stay with breakfast, and dinner for around 400 persons.
“We have established 5 ‘model Ehsaas Panagahs’ to provide standard services to the people visiting Islamabad and every shelter home have 6 washrooms, 6 to 10 washing booths”, he added.
Neseem said the management has completed the second round of fumigation spray in the shelter home in Islamabad with the collaboration of all stake holders.
Sharing the details of Panahgahs running under the social welfare departments of the provinces, he said that there are 70 Panahgahs in Punjab, 40 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and 5 each in Sindh and Balochistan and one in Gilgit Baltistan, while one place is identified for the establishment of shelter home in Azad Jammu Kashmir.
Naseem said around 210,000 passengers and homeless people have benefitted from Panahgahs (Shelter Homes) during last year.
The shelter homes have provided nutritious food to around 3.6 million people in Panahgahs during the last one year.
The government has expanded Ehsaas Koi Bhooka Na Soy (EKBNS) programme and ensure deployment of 24 food trucks in various cities across the country which was benefited around 1.5 million last month.
In the winter season, the residents of the panahgahs have increased by 35 percent, he said adding that the poor workers, daily wagers, would allow to stay in Panahaghs.
Priority has always given to aged workers, belong from poverty increased areas.
