RAWALPINDI:

The Punjab Zakat Department has approved a new pilot project to cover fines for prisoners who have completed their sentences but remain incarcerated due to an inability to pay penalties.

A grant of Rs50 million has been allocated for this initiative.

Additionally, the department has increased the monthly Zakat allowance for impoverished families living below the poverty line from Rs1,500 to Rs2,000.

The Zakat marriage grant for underprivileged families has also been raised from Rs25,000 to Rs0.1 million.

Furthermore, after a 13-month suspension, financial aid for over 0.3 million Zakat beneficiary families across the province will be resumed as an Eid gift before Eidul Fitr.

To facilitate this, the government has been asked to release the Zakat deductions collected from banks during Ramadan.

The Zakat Department has requested a detailed list of eligible inmates from the inspector general (IG) of prisons.

The process of releasing these prisoners by paying their fines will begin a week before Eidul Fitr.

According to jail sources, thousands of prisoners who have served their 5- to 10-year sentences remain in jails solely because they cannot afford to pay their fines.