Senior citizens, young mothers wait for days in long lines as pensions halted

Mysuru: With the State Government putting on hold the pensions of over 41,000 beneficiaries in the city and district, who are receiving monthly financial benefits under various social security schemes following a revision, the deprived pensioners continue to throng the Taluk Office in Nazarbad.

As many as 41,000 out of 1,20,000 beneficiaries of pension schemes were left out after being categorised as ineligible during an intensive revision drive launched by the authorities following a Government direction.

The left-out pensioners are a depressed lot as their benefits have come to an abrupt halt, with the Government capping the annual income at Rs. 32,000 to avail pensions and benefits under most of the schemes.

Shocked by sudden suspension of pension, disqualified pensioners who have been marked as ineligible have begun to line up at Taluk Office with fresh applications and required certificates.

Previously, most of these beneficiaries had mentioned their ‘family’ annual income as Rs. 80,000, which came within the earlier annual income cap of Rs. 1.2 lakh. They are also submitting birth certificates to prove their eligibility under the age group and other required certificates.

Long queues have become a regular sight at the Taluk Office over the past fortnight. During the revision of records, the authorities found that many ineligible, underage or APL card holders had been listed as beneficiaries under various schemes.

Though the authorities have issued notices to them to verify their records, the left-out beneficiaries are regularly visiting the Taluk Office with fresh applications and to get their certificates rectified for errors, discrepancies or wrong entries.

The Government has introduced ‘Samyojane’, a mobile app to help beneficiaries check their records/certificates. However, as most of the beneficiaries lack the education or knowledge to use the app correctly, the hapless beneficiaries have urged the Government to continue their pensions/benefits as per the earlier norms.

The State-sponsored welfare pensions and schemes are:

Sandhya Suraksha Yojane- Regular monthly income support for eligible senior citizens aged 65 and above.

Destitute Widow Pension Scheme (DWPS)- Financial aid for women above 18 years who have lost their husbands.

Disabled Pension Scheme- Monthly assistance for individuals with 40 percent or higher disability, with enhanced scales for severe or intellectual disabilities.

Manasvini- Financial assistance for unmarried and divorced women aged 40 to 64 years from BPL backgrounds.

Mythri Scheme- Support grants for transgender individuals aged 25 to 64 years.

Endosulfan Pension Scheme- Specialised medical and financial relief for identified victims in affected coastal districts such as Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada and Udupi.

Widow Pension for Farmer Suicide Cases- Targeted livelihood support for widows of farmers who died by suicide due to debt.

Acid Attack Victims Pension- Higher rehabilitation support grant for female survivors of acid attacks.

Ex-Devadasi Pension- Dedicated security pension for liberated Devadasi women.

Freedom Fighter/Family Pension- State honour pension awarded to recognised State and Central political freedom fighters or their dependents.