Pakistan's BISP removes 2.25 million fake beneficiaries

The Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) has removed over 2.25 million fake beneficiaries from its records and suspended payments to more than 800,000 others, according to information presented to Pakistan's National Assembly.

An audit identified 229,157 government employees or their spouses as ineligible recipients. Of these, 32,971 were exempted from recovery because their monthly pensions were Rs29,000 or below. The Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety reported that over Rs712 million has been recovered from ineligible beneficiaries. This recovery includes Rs545.784 million through the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), Rs21.550 million from BISP employees, and Rs145.066 million from other government departments.

Disciplinary actions and recovery proceedings have been initiated against 236 BISP employees. Additionally, the ministry is investigating 55,579 complaints regarding unauthorized deductions, embezzlement, and misappropriation. BISP has also issued a warning to citizens regarding fraudulent social media and mobile scams, noting that all official communications are sent exclusively from the number 8171.