LAHORE, Aug 25 (APP):Chairperson Benazir Income Support Programme, Senator Rubina Khalid, visited the Benazir

SIM Distribution Site established here at Govt Islamia Boys Higher Secondary School, Multan

Road, and reviewed the arrangements for free distribution of SIMs to women beneficiaries.

During the visit, she interacted with the women, listened to their concerns and briefed them

in detail about the Benazir SIM, the new digital payment system and the necessary precautions

for its safe use.

Senator Rubina Khalid categorically stated that the Benazir SIM was completely free of cost

and no fee was charged for its issuance. She clarified that BISP does not charge any fee for

any of its schemes, services or surveys, and no form was required for the survey. She urged

women beneficiaries not to allow any agent to deduct money from their payments and to immediately

report any such complaint so that timely action could be taken against those responsible.

The Chairperson informed the women that the Benazir SIM serves as their digital wallet,

and its security was their responsibility. She advised them not to hand over their mobile phones

or SIMs to any agent. She further explained that beneficiaries would receive a confirmation

message on their mobile phones when their stipend was credited and advised them to keep

the message safe and not delete it. She stressed that the Benazir SIM should only be obtained

from the designated BISP office and not from any shop or unauthorized source.

She further explained that under the new digital system, eligible women could withdraw their

payments from any location across the country, at any time, through an authorized agent of

any partner bank. If a beneficiary was unable to receive her payment from one agent, she

could visit an agent of another authorized bank and receive her payment there.

Senator Rubina Khalid said that the new digital system had been introduced in BISP on the

directions of President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, with

the objective of providing greater convenience, transparency and empowerment to women

beneficiaries in receiving their payments. She said the system was aligned with the vision

of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto to empower women and protect vulnerable segments

of society.

She said that Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto remains a symbol of courage, determination

and resilience for women. She urged women to draw inspiration from her life, stand up for their

rights and raise their voice against any form of injustice or mistreatment.The Chairperson further

informed the beneficiaries that women facing difficulties with biometric thumb verification could

obtain a facial recognition certificate from NADRA offices. She said the new digital system was

being continuously monitored to identify and address beneficiaries’ concerns and complaints

in a timely manner and to further improve the effectiveness of the system. She advised beneficiaries

to obtain authentic and verified information about the Benazir Income Support Programme only

through BISP’s official social media accounts, and to rely on information shared through the

programme’s verified, blue-tick accounts.

Later, Chairperson Senator Rubina Khalid visited the BISP Central Zonal Office Lahore,

where she reviewed the mechanism for registration and resolution of complaints and appreciated

the arrangements in place for their timely redressal. Director General Punjab, Naseeruddin

Sarwar, was also present on the occasion.

Chairperson reviews BISP digital payment system