The Aaghosh program gives cash support to pregnant women and mothers of young children in 13 Punjab districts, tied to completing basic health steps. This guide explains who qualifies, what each payment is for, how much is paid, how the money reaches you, and how to register.
It is run by the Punjab Social Protection Authority (PSPA) as a part of the Punjab Human Capital Investment Project (PHCIP), with support from the Health and Population Department.
What the Aaghosh program is for
The first thousand days, from pregnancy to a child’s second birthday, shape a child’s health for life. Yet many mothers in low-income households skip antenatal check-ups, deliver at home without trained help, or miss vaccinations. Usually the reason is cost: transport fares, lost wages, and clinic expenses.
Aaghosh addresses that by paying the mother at each step, so the visit pays for itself instead of costing the family money it does not have.
PSPA says the aim is to improve maternal and newborn health among poor and vulnerable households, and the payments are built around exactly the steps that keep mothers and babies alive and healthy.
Who is eligible
PSPA’s official page lists three requirements. You must be:
- A pregnant or lactating woman, or the mother of a child under two
- Holding a valid CNIC
- Living in one of the 13 covered districts
The 13 districts are: Bahawalpur, Bahawalnagar, Bhakkar, Dera Ghazi Khan, Taunsa, Khushab, Kot Addu, Layyah, Lodhran, Mianwali, Muzaffargarh, Rahim Yar Khan and Rajanpur.
If you live anywhere else in Punjab, Aaghosh does not cover you yet. Look at the other programs listed at the end of this guide.
How much is paid, and when
As of September 2026, PSPA lists total support of up to Rs 38,000. The total was raised from Rs 23,000 in 2025, so older figures you see on blogs and videos are out of date.
The important detail: it is not one payment. PSPA lists seven stages:
| Health step | Payment |
|---|---|
| Registration at a BHU or RHC by a Lady Health Visitor | Rs 2,000 |
| Four antenatal visits (Rs 3,000 per visit) | Rs 12,000 |
| Safe delivery at a government health facility (BHU, RHC, THQ or DHQ) | Rs 10,000 |
| Newborn check-up within 15 days of birth | Rs 2,000 |
| First measles vaccination | Rs 3,000 |
| Second measles vaccination | Rs 4,000 |
| The child’s CRC number added to the EMR app | Rs 5,000 |
| Total | Up to Rs 38,000 |
The CRC is NADRA’s Child Registration Certificate, which most families call the B-Form. So registering your baby’s birth is worth Rs 5,000 on its own.
Amounts and stages are policy decisions and can change. Confirm the current position on the social protection helpline 1221.
Is Aaghosh still running?
As of September 2026, PSPA’s website still lists Aaghosh with the Rs 38,000 schedule and the 13 districts. The Punjab Human Capital Investment Project that Aaghosh belongs to is supported by the World Bank. In June 2025, Business Recorder reported that the project’s closing date had been moved to 30 June 2026. We could not find an official update on what happens after that date.
So before you travel to a health facility only for Aaghosh, call 1221 or ask your Lady Health Visitor whether new registrations are being taken in your district.
The conditions attached
Aaghosh is a conditional programme. Enrolment alone does not produce payment. PSPA says the program focuses on:
- Quarterly medical check-ups for pregnant women
- Safe deliveries at a health facility, assisted by trained staff
- Immunisation of children under two
- Birth registration support
- Awareness sessions on nutrition, hygiene, family planning and child care
Each of these is something you would want for your child anyway. The programme simply removes the financial reason to skip it.
How to register
There is no public online application form. Registration happens where the health services happen.
Step 1: Go to a BHU or RHC
Visit a Basic Health Unit (BHU) or Rural Health Centre (RHC) in a covered district. PSPA says a Lady Health Visitor (LHV) registers eligible women on the Electronic Medical Record (EMR) app there.
Step 2: Take your documents
Bring:
- Your original CNIC
- Any pregnancy record or antenatal card you already have
- The child’s B-Form and vaccination card, if the child is already born
- An active mobile number registered on your own CNIC
Step 3: Get enrolled
The LHV records your details in the app. Registration is free. Nobody should charge you for it.
Step 4: Keep every appointment
This is where the money actually comes from. Attend your antenatal visits, deliver at a government facility, bring the baby for the newborn check-up, and complete both measles vaccinations. Keep your antenatal card and vaccination card safe, since they are the proof that a condition was met.
How the money reaches you
PSPA announced in April 2025 that Aaghosh payments are paid through JazzCash agents. You collect the money at a nearby JazzCash agent after biometric (fingerprint) verification, and PSPA said there are no fees or deductions. The JazzCash helpline PSPA gave for this is 051-111-124-444.
PSPA’s home page also has a button for checking Aaghosh registration and balance, which opens payment.pspa.gop.pk. We could not open that page when we checked in September 2026. If it does not work for you, ask at your health facility or call 1221.
If your payment has not arrived
Work through this list before assuming you were rejected:
- Was the step completed and recorded in the app? An unrecorded visit does not count.
- Is your CNIC correct in the system?
- Is your mobile number active and registered on your own CNIC?
- Has enough time passed? Payments follow a processing cycle.
- Did you move district? Only the 13 districts are covered.
Ask at the health facility where you registered first, since they can see whether the visit was recorded. Then call 1221, PSPA’s 24-hour social protection helpline, which takes questions about eligibility, enrolment, cash-out agents and complaints.
Why the conditions are worth meeting anyway
It is easy to read the condition list as red tape. It is more useful to read it as the actual point of the programme.
Each step it pays for is one that measurably reduces risk:
- Antenatal check-ups catch problems such as anaemia, high blood pressure, and poor foetal growth while they can still be treated.
- Delivery with trained staff is the single biggest factor in surviving complications such as haemorrhage, which can kill within hours at home.
- Immunisation protects against diseases that still cause childhood deaths in Pakistan.
- Birth registration gives your child a legal identity, without which school admission, a CNIC, and every future welfare programme become difficult.
- Nutrition sessions address stunting, which is largely irreversible after age two.
In other words, the money is not a reward for paperwork. It covers the fare and the lost wages that stop mothers doing things they already want to do.
Keep your cards safe
The single most practical thing you can do is protect two pieces of paper:
- The antenatal card, which records your pregnancy check-ups
- The vaccination card, which records your child’s immunisation
These are your proof that a condition was met. If a payment is disputed or a visit is missing from the system, the card is what settles it. Keep them together, keep them dry, and take them to every appointment. If a card is lost, tell the health facility promptly so the record can be reconstructed rather than left blank.
Protect yourself from fraud
- Registration and all health services under the programme are free.
- No agent can add your name for a fee.
- Never share an OTP with anyone, including someone claiming to be from a bank or hospital.
- Payment comes through the official system, never through a private individual.
- Ignore blogs and WhatsApp messages that offer “online Aaghosh registration”. Registration is done by the LHV at the health facility.
Report anyone demanding money through the Pakistan Citizen’s Portal.
Contact
- Website: pspa.punjab.gov.pk
- Social protection helpline: 1221
- JazzCash helpline for Aaghosh cash-out: 051-111-124-444
- PSPA phone: 042-99231758
Related programmes for mothers and children
If Aaghosh does not cover your district, other options may:
- Benazir Nashonuma, the federal nutrition programme for mothers and children under two
- Sehat Card, for hospital admissions at empanelled private hospitals (it does not cover deliveries)
- Benazir Kafaalat, the federal quarterly stipend
- Zewar-e-Taleem, for girls in school later on
Registering the birth is also worth doing promptly, both for Aaghosh and for everything that follows. See our birth certificate guide.
To see which Punjab and federal programmes your household may qualify for, try our free eligibility checker.
GoPunjab is an independent information website. We are not PSPA or the Health Department, cannot enrol you, and cannot release a payment. We only explain how the official process works.