MANSEHRA: PTI leader Jamil Ahmad has complained that the provincial government’s health insurance scheme, Sehat Sahulat Card, doesn’t cover Torghar district and some parts of Mansehra district.

“The entire Torghar population and the people of Mansehra’s Tanawal area can’t avail themselves of the Sehat Sahulat Card initiative as the government has yet to empanel the local hospitals for free healthcare,” Mr Jamil told reporters in Oghi area on Tuesday.

Leading a group of residents, the former PTI tehsil president said though the government had announced the provision of healthcare under the Sehat Sahulat Card programme to those holding computerised national identity cards but Torghar and Tanawal health facilities had yet to be covered by the scheme.

He complained that the residents took up the issue with the local health officials and lawmakers, but to no avail.

PTI leader complains people go to other districts to benefit from health insurance scheme

Mr Jamil said the locals had to go to other districts to benefit from the programme.

He said PTI chairman and former prime minister Imran Khan had ordered the provision of free health services to the people on their doorstep and therefore, the Sehat Sahulat Card scheme was launched but the people of Torghar and some parts of Mansehra had yet to benefit from it.

The PTI leader demanded chairman of the district development advisory committee Nawabzada Fareed to intervene for the coverage of Torghar and Mansehra districts by the Sehat Sahulat Card programme.

HELD: The police arrested a man here on Tuesday for sexually assaulting a teenage girl.

SHO of the City Police Station Asim Bukhari told reporters that a factory worker from Batdarian area raped the 13-year-old after deceiving her into accompanying him to a field and issuing death threats.

He said the suspected assaulter was held while trying to flee the area and was booked under Section 367 of PPC and Section 53 of Child protection Act.

IMPOUNDED: The traffic police impounded transport vehicles on overcharging complaints.

Traffic wardens led by inspector Mudassir Zia took the action by stopping vehicles along the Karakoram Highway.

They also fined many transport drivers for violating traffic laws.

Meanwhile, women tehsil councillors-elect on Tuesday demanded of the government to make matriculation mandatory for local body offices.

“The government should amend the Local Government Act to ensure the presence of at least matriculates in local bodies,” tehsil councillor-elect Nasra Bibi told an interaction session organised by the Aawaz 11 in collaboration with the Sub-National Governance Programme here.

The event was attended by the tehsil, village and neighbourhood councillors elected on the seats reserved for women from Mansehra, Balakot, Oghi and Baffa-Pakhal areas.

Tehsil councillor-elect Anila Mehmood said she would highlight issues of the local women, transgender persons, people with disabilities, and minorities for necessary measures by the authorities.

Published in Dawn,June 15th, 2022