President Mamnoon Hussain on Tuesday approved a welfare package of over Rs 10 million for the writers and artists hailing from the four provinces, a statement from the President House said. The president gave approval to the package while chairing the 8th meeting of Steering Committee for Federal Government Artists Welfare Fund (FGAWF) at the Aiwan-e-Sadr. The president, who was chairing the last meeting of the Fund, expressed the hope that this welfare activity would continue to provide support for the artists. He thanked all the members of the committee and philanthropists for their participation and efforts in this noble task of resolving the issues of the artists. The president emphasised that writers, poets and artists were the valuable part of the society and promote positive image of the country. He underscored that society must also take care of them in the hour of need. He said the FGAWF would be enhanced to extend its reach to more artists. The meeting also discussed several other suggestions to increase the welfare fund. Members of the Steering Committee Ataul Haq Qasmi, Zeba Muhammad Ali, Asghar Nadeem Syed, Qawi Khan, Salman Alvi, Mustafa Qureshi, Najeebullah Anjum and senior officials were present in the meeting. Published in Daily Times, August 8th 2018.