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Aaghaz Welfare Trust is the brain child of Dr Anita Qureshi who completed her MBBS in 1983 from Sind Medical College, Karachi. Along with her husband Dr. Agha Tariq Sajjad, also an MBBS from Sind Medical College Karachi, she created this welfare organization with an aim to fight disease, illiteracy and poverty in Pakistan.
Aaghaz Welfare Trust started its operations in September 2002, under the name Suffah Welfare Center, with various welfare acts ranging from interest-free micro-credit to joint marriages and emergency relief efforts. In April 2004 the organization was registered as Aaghaz Welfare Trust under the Trust Act of Pakistan.
However, to capitalize on their professional education as medical doctors the founders adopted a CGDL OPD clinic and dispensary in 2006 so as to provide free healthcare to low income people. Since then Aaghaz Welfare Trust is being run by Dr. Anita Qureshi and Dr. Agha Tariq Sajjad as a regular full-time welfare organization. The dispensary and office of the trust are situated in a small rented place in Town Ship Lahore.
The funds for running the trust are exclusively generated through personal contacts and generous private donors who have come forward to support the cause. No foreign or local funding agency funding was available to the trust at any point of time.
Video of Dr. Agha Tariq’s interview on Morning Masala, News One
Welfare Activities
Currently the main activity of the AWT is running an OPD & Dispensary which started it’s operations in September 2006. Since then it has expanded to include a testing lab, vaccination center, ultrasound facility and an operation theater. It is located in a low income area of Lahore and currently treats around 170 patients a day, six days a week, free of cost.
Learn more: OPD & Dispensary | Past Acitvities
How to Help
Since June 2009, more than an year now, CDGL (City District Government Lahore) has stopped providing the promised funds (80% of the total expenses) for the OPD in spite of repeated requests and efforts in this regards. The Rs 5/patient token fee taken from the patients amounts to around Rs. 30,000 to 40,000 per month. As a result AWT has been meeting the most part of the expenses of the OPD & dispensary, around Rs. 276,500 per month, all this time from private donations.
However, due to the low economic growth of our country, the number of donors as well as the amount contributed is becoming less with time. AWT is financially constrained and will have to suspend its operations if the situation remains the same.
Here are details about our monthly expenses:
