FAQS

Islam encourages Muslims to seek halal employment and take part in trade and business activity to earn sustenance. But in order for commerce and individual endeavor to benefit society, Islam places several obligations on those involved in the creation of wealth. Amongst these is the sacred obligation of Zakat, a divine directive of philanthropy and humanity. Scholars state that the giving of Zakat has both an outer and an inner dimension. The inner dimension subdues the ego, helping Muslims to overcome the imperfections of selfishness and greed. The outer dimension involves the purification of a Muslim’s wealth and helping those in need. Remember, our faith dictates that by paying our Zakat we are in fact increasing our wealth, not diminishing it!

• Adult: Having reached the age of puberty
• Muslim: Zakat is not obliged upon non-Muslims
• Sane: Be of sound mind
• Sahib-un-Nisaab: In complete ownership of the Nisab

Yes. In Islam, intention is an important part of any act of worship, including the payment of zakat. The intention must be made at the time the zakat is paid.

Zakat isn’t charity, It’s not voluntary charity not a tax but an obligation. By giving it, a Muslim is acknowledging that everything we’ve is Allah’s and that we don’t really own it, and that we should use it to remember Allah and help those that are in need. It’s also an act to assist free us from excessive desire and greed, learn self-discipline and honesty.

Your Zakat year starts on the date your wealth first equaled or exceeded the Nisab. Zakat should then be calculated and paid after one year has passed and every year thereafter on that specific date. If you cannot remember the date you first became owner of the Nisab, then the date should be estimated. If this is not possible, then a specific Islamic date should be selected randomly and adhered to annually. Paying Zakat in Ramadan is not necessary, although the virtue of giving charity in this blessed month guarantees greater rewards. Zakat should be dispensed as soon as possible once it becomes due. At the very latest, Zakat should be dispensed one Islamic year after the due date as it is a sin to delay disbursement without a valid reason.

Zakat can only be paid to specific beneficiaries and projects.

The Qur’an mentions eight groups of individuals on whom it should be spent:

• The Fuqara’ (the poor)
• Al-Maskin (the needy)
• Aamileen (Zakat collector)
• Muallafatul Quloob (poor and needy who recently converted to Islam)
• Ar-Riqaab (slaves; Zakat can be used to purchase their freedom)
• Ibnus-Sabeel: A stranded traveller in need of financial assistance
• Al Ghaarimeen: A debtor
• Fi Sabeelillah: Those who are away from home in the path of Allah

It is important that we balance our giving between local and international beneficiaries, as there are edicts to give Zakat locally if deserving recipients exist. This should be assessed on the actual needs of the poor, their actual access to welfare and whether the Zakat could mean the difference between continued poverty or life and death.

If Zakat has not been paid in previous years, whether through negligence or ignorance or error, then an honest attempt must be made to calculate the payment owed. This must then be paid as a matter of urgency.

Tola is a unit of weight used in the Asian subcontinent that is equal to the weight of a silver rupee. It is also known as bhori or vori. One tola is equal to 11.66 grams. Therefore, 87.48 grams of gold is equivalent to 7.5 tola.

Assets to incorporate in your Zakat calculation are cash (in hand, in bank accounts or money lent to someone), shares, pensions, gold and silver. Personal items (your home, furniture, cars, food, clothing) aren’t included in Nisaab.

There are two measures to work out Nisaab – gold or silver.

• Gold: The Nisaab by the gold standard is 3 ounces of gold (87.48 grams) or its debt equivalent. The worth will vary with the present market price of gold.
• Silver: The Nisaab by the silver standard is 21 ounces of silver (612.36 grams) or its equivalent in cash.

Zakat can only be paid to specific beneficiaries and projects.

Gold: For instance, if the worth of gold is £20 a gram, the Nisaab (£20 x 87.48) on which Zakat is due is £1,749. So anyone who has £1,749 or more in savings will need to pay 2.5% on that (minimum Zakat will be £43.73)

Silver: For example, if the price of silver is £1 a gram, the Nisaab (£1 x 612.36) on which Zakat is due is £612.36. So anyone who has £612.36 or more in savings will have to pay 2.5% on that (minimum Zakat will be £15.31)

PLEASE NOTE: These are examples. If you wish to calculate your Zakat, you must obtain up to date information on the price of gold and silver. For more information contact your local Mosque or Imam.

Once you have submitted your application, please ensure you email the require documentation too. Our team will make sure that you have given us all the information and documents we need to assess your application and that you are eligible to apply for help. If there is anything you have missed, you will be asked to send it to us within 10 days.

We will then look at how much money you have, your monthly income and expenses, as well as any debts you may have to confirm that we can help you.

If we can give you a grant, we will email you to confirm this and arrange payment for you. If we cannot give you a grant, we will email you to tell you why.

We will put the money into your bank account.

For more information or to ask any specific questions, please call our helpline on 021-111-142-273

Presently two types of eye camps are held: Comprehensive eye care camps with 'Reach-out Approach', and Screening eye camps (Reach-in- Approach with comprehensive eye care), both are community-orientated approaches to tackle the backlog of cataract blindness under the National Programme for the Control of Blindness.

1. We advertise in local newspapers, TV stations, community centers and the radio one month in advance so we make sure as many people are aware as possible.
2. We carry out screening services to determine who require glasses, medication, surgery or further hospital referrals.
3. Those who require surgery and are healthy undergo further testing for Diabetes, Blood Pressure, HIV and Hepatitis B & C.

1. Vision Testing:

A group of optometrists perform a thorough vision examination to assess refractive errors and prescribe corrective glasses.

2. Ophthalmologist Review:

After their vision test each patient is assessed by an ophthalmologist who performs a comprehensive review and recommends the appropriate treatment.

3. Cataract Screening:

Each patient is screened for cataracts and requiring surgery are offered this treatment.

4. Pre-operative Assessment & Counselling:

Those who are offered treatment undergo a pre-operative assessment including blood sugar and blood pressure checks, after which they are given counselling.

5. Surgical Intervention:

Once patients have been declared fit for surgery and have consented to treatment they are operated on in a nearby medical facility.

6. Education:

Several patients attending the camps come with incurable eye conditions which in many cases could have been avoided if detected and treated in time. One of the main objectives of our work is to teach the community how to recognize signs and seek treatment early in order to prevent blindness. In addition, patients are educated about the value of nutrition and during the camps children are provided with multi-vitamins and vitamin A supplements due to the high prevalence of night blindness in the region.

Treatment at the Eye Camp is completely free at the point of use for the people who attend. The Camps are entirely funded by donations.

All donations for the eye camp directly benefit patients, in various ways. The majority have funded the treatment and medication dispensed to patients at these camps.  Some donations were directed towards hiring the safe, clean facilities and essential provisions such as medical equipment needed in order to run the eye camps. The remainder of donations went towards providing food to surgical patients, whom in many cases are extremely fragile and malnourished.

As a charity every penny spent goes towards our causes and directly impacts those we are helping.  Every member and volunteer is responsible for covering their own travel and expenses.

The primary purpose of the outreach is to identify patients’ of curable blindness. The outreach program focuses mainly on making eye care facilities accessible to many poor patients as well as overall who cannot afford eye care due to their small budgets. It also focuses on making eye care available for isolated communities, which were suffer from poor infrastructure, and a low-density population, which prohibits the lack of eye awareness and facilities.

These propose camp activities start with the objective to provide a facility in and around to deal with eye problems especially for the deprived class of the society. With a view to help the under privileged community, Hashmanis Group of Hospitals has been doing cataract surgery FREE OF COST including, Pre-operative investigations, food and stay for the patients coming from proposed camps conducted with the help of NGOs.