PROVIDENT FUND: The current general provident fund (GPF) system for government employees is based on interest and everyone has to participate. Those who attempt to avoid interest are offered a so-called interest-free alternative, which is an option that is fundamentally flawed. It fails to even preserve the value of their savings, let alone offer any real growth. The state should not compel its Muslim employees to choose between religious integrity and financial security. The government should immediately introduce an interest-free GPF structure that offers inflation-adjusted returns through ethical and productive avenues for the employees.

Muhammad Asif Amin
Islamabad

UNJUSTIFIED FEE: The fee being charged at the Benazir Bhutto Library in Ghotki is unjustified. The library currently demands Rs700 for new membership, and Rs500 for card renewal. This is seriously unfair. These excessive charges discourage access to learning, and contradict the basic purpose of public libraries, which is to provide free and equal access to knowledge. A lot more troubling is the fact that the library falls under administrative control of the local government, which has already allocated a budget of Rs11.4 million for it. If the library is publicly funded, why are users being asked to pay such high charges?

Saifullah Laghari
Ghotki

X-RAY STRUGGLE: The radiology department at the District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital in Swabi receives a large number of people every day, but struggles to provide any meaningful relief to the ailing patients owing to lack of equipment and rude staff. The department has only two printers, one of which has for long been out of service. Patients have to wait for hours, first to have their turn in the queue, and then to receive the report. Recently, I had to wait for about two hours to receive an X-ray report, which was rejected by the doctor for being inconclusive. I had to have another X-ray done from a private lab.

Waseem Abbas
Swabi

Published in Dawn, July 19th, 2025