Latest news with #NSAP
Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
Contracted data entry operator diverts pensions to his relatives' accounts
Rajkot: A contracted data entry operator of the social security department in Kalavad town of Jamnagar district has been booked for siphoning off Rs 9.54 lakh from the exchequer which was intended for social welfare beneficiaries. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Dhruvraj Jadeja worked in the department for the past eight years. A complaint was filed against him by deputy mamlatdar Mahesh Kamejaliya at Kalavad police station for criminal breach of trust and forgery. According to the complaint, Jadeja manipulated beneficiary data in the National Social Assistance Program (NSAP) software, which is used to manage disbursements to vulnerable groups such as persons with disabilities and widows. On July 15, district social security officer H M Ramani flagged discrepancies in 16 beneficiary accounts, such as mismatches between registered names and payment details. A joint investigation with the mamlatdar's office found that Jadeja had reactivated dormant beneficiary accounts and redirected payments to the accounts of his friends and relatives. Jadeja allegedly confessed to the fraud and admitted using the login credentials of the mamlatdar and deputy mamlatdar without their knowledge to carry out the transactions. Further investigation is underway.
Time of India
14-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Verification in final phase; pension disbursal to begin from July first week
The Social Welfare Department is finalizing the verification process for Old Age and Disability Pension schemes in Delhi, with disbursal expected to begin in early July. Door-to-door surveys ensured authenticity, and assistance will be provided to new applicants. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The district-wise verification process to identify eligible and ineligible beneficiaries under the Old Age Pension and Persons with Disability Pension schemes has reached its final stage with disbursal of pensions expected to begin from the first week of July, said a senior official from the Social Welfare Department The verification, conducted through door-to-door surveys across various districts, involved thorough background checks and validation of the applicants' bank details to ensure authenticity, the official said."For the convenience of new applicants, who may not be familiar with online forms or lack formal education, an officer will be stationed at the pension window in every department office to assist them in filling out the application on the spot," he official said the eligible beneficiaries will start getting their pension on time after the complete verification in all the districts across the national capital, adding this will start from the first week of next further said the department is working as per clear instructions from the Delhi Social Welfare Ministry that no one who is not genuinely in need should receive these benefits, while those who truly require support must not be left behind."It is our duty to ensure that public money reaches the right hands. We found some individuals already living comfortably, with substantial bank balances, who do not require state assistance," he pension schemes for the senior citizens and persons with disabilities come under the Social Welfare Department and are part of the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP), which was launched on August 15, schemes have over the years been expanded and Old Age Pension scheme was renamed the Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme in 2007, while the Disability Pension scheme was broadened in 2009 to cover a wider section of eligible old age pension provides Rs 2,000 per month to elderly beneficiaries aged 60 years and above, and Rs 2,500 to those aged 70 and above, subject to eligibility criteria. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had in the budget announcement earlier in March this year announced an increase of Rs 500 in the old age pension amount for both age the hike, the beneficiaries aged 60 and above now receive Rs 2,500 per month, while those aged 70 and above receive Rs 3,000 per the Financial Assistance to Persons with Special Needs scheme, an eligible individual receives a monthly assistance of Rs 2,500.
Hans India
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
TN bears greater financial burden for central schemes, official data reveals
Chennai: Despite being labelled as Central schemes, the Tamil Nadu government contributes a significantly higher share of funds than the Union government in at least six major welfare and infrastructure programmes, according to official documents from the State governments. The schemes in question include three under the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) -- the Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme (IGNOAPS), Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme (IGNWPS), and Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme (IGNDPS) -- as well as the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY-Rural), Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), and the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM). The NSAP, launched in 1995 as a fully Central-funded initiative, was preceded by Tamil Nadu's own pension scheme, which began in January 1962. Between 1974 and 1984, the State expanded its support to include persons with disabilities, widows, agricultural labourers, and deserted women. These were eventually brought under the national scheme in 2007. Under the IGNOAPS and IGNWPS, the Centre provides a modest monthly contribution of Rs 200 or Rs 300 for beneficiaries below 80 years, and Rs 500 for those aged 80 and above. It is the Tamil Nadu government that tops up this amount, providing an additional Rs 1,000, Rs 900, or Rs 700, depending on the category, ensuring that the final payout reaches Rs 1,200 per beneficiary. Similarly, under IGNDPS, beneficiaries receive Rs 1,500, of which only Rs 300 or Rs 500 is borne by the Centre. The rest is funded by the State government. Tamil Nadu also independently supports persons with disabilities through a separate scheme, offering Rs 1,500 to each beneficiary. In the case of PMAY-Rural, the nominal cost-sharing ratio is 60:40 (Centre: State) in plain areas. However, Tamil Nadu contributes significantly more. The total unit cost of a house in the State is Rs 2,83,900, factoring in RCC roofing and components from MGNREGS and Swachh Bharat (Rural). Of this, the Centre provides Rs 1,11,100 while the State contributes Rs 1,72,800, effectively resulting in a 39:61 split. Under the PMMSY, while the prescribed cost-sharing formula allocates 60 per cent to the Centre and 40 per cent to the State, implementation figures show that Tamil Nadu ends up bearing 73 per cent of the cost, with only 27 per cent coming from the Centre. The Jal Jeevan Mission, which mandates a 50:50 cost-sharing model, also sees a higher contribution from the State in practice -- 55 per cent, compared to the Centre's 45 per cent. These figures highlight a recurring trend where Tamil Nadu takes on a disproportionately higher financial responsibility in schemes designed and advertised as centrally sponsored.
The Hindu
13-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Tamil Nadu's share higher than Union government's in funding for 6 Central schemes
The Tamil Ndau government's contributes more monetarily compared to the Union government for the implementation of six Central schemes, according to a perusal of documents of the Central and State governments. There are three schemes under the umbrella of the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) — Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme (IGNOAPS), Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme (IGNWPS), and the Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme (IGNDPS). The remaining three schemes are the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)-Rural, Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), and the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM). On Thursday, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, in his speech at a government event in Salem, referred to these schemes and said that with the contribution of the Union government, it was not possible to implement them, be it housing or water supply. 'Even in the case of the schemes named after the Prime Minister, the State government, by providing more than 50% [of the scheme cost], has been implementing them,' he observed. Fully funded by the Centre, the NSAP was launched in August 1995. However, the State government has been a pioneer in this area and started implementing an old age pension scheme since January 1962. It extended the scope of the welfare measure to four categories of destitute persons — persons with disabilities, widows, agricultural labourers, and destitute or deserted women following marriage — between 1974 and 1984, all of which were subsumed into the all-India programme after November 2007. In respect of the Old Age and Widow Pension schemes under the NSAP, the Union government's share is ₹200 or ₹300 for those up to 79 years and ₹500 for those aged 80 and above. It is the State government that provides the enhanced top-up — ₹1,000 or ₹900 or ₹ 700, as the case may be — so that the beneficiary eventually gets ₹1,200. As for the beneficiaries under the IGNDPS, they receive ₹1,500, of which ₹300 or ₹500 comes from the Centre, depending on the age group, while the rest is contributed by the State government. In addition, Tamil Nadu funds its own scheme for persons with disabilities, under which beneficiaries are paid ₹1,500. Regarding the PMAY (Rural), the unit cost of a house is shared between Central and State governments in the ratio 60:40 in plain areas. As pointed out by the Chief Minister, the State government's share is perceptibly higher than that of the Centre. In the State, the unit cost of a house under PMAY-R is ₹2,83,900, which is inclusive of the State support cost for reinforced cement concrete (RCC) roofing and the convergence with the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the Swachh Bharat Mission (Rural) for the purpose of the construction of toilet. Of this amount, the Union government's share is ₹1,11,100 and the State government's ₹1,72,800. Effectively, the ratio of cost sharing is 39:61. As for PMMSY, which follows different funding patterns, 60% of the cost is to be borne by the Union government and the rest by the State. But, in practice, the Centre's share is 27% and the State's 73%. In the case of the JJM, the cost sharing is to be done equally between the two. But, when it comes to implementation, the State's contribution works out to 55%.
Hindustan Times
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
What the State must do for the unskilled aged
The Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC-2011) had indicated that over 40 million rural households did not have a 25-year-plus literate person in the household. With one-in-five non-literate households and one-in-four landless agricultural labour households, India must look after a generation of non-literate and unskilled wage labourers as they reach old age. Per capita monthly consumption expenditure at under ₹2,000 (2022-23) in the bottom 20% of families also reminds of households that do not get a dignified survival. With increasing nuclearisation of families even in rural areas, old persons living by themselves on a few days of work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), free food-grains, and a paltry pension, are not uncommon. Older people reporting for MGNREGS work is also a reality in states like Punjab where market wages are high. All this points to the gaps in our social security system and its ability to secure a life of dignity for the old. With time, this need for care is going to get bigger as ageing with higher life expectancy is a reality. Support for the elderly needs holistic attention. Access to cashless secondary and tertiary care under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) is welcome, but access to free medicines, caregivers, primary and palliative care, among others, continue to be a challenge. Effective coverage under PMJAY requires last-mile facilitation through community workers and caregivers as mere enrolment is no guarantee of free cashless service. Old-age pension is a part of the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP). But, at ₹200- ₹500, the support has remained extremely modest. If states did not provide additional support from their own budgets, the NSAP support would mean little to an old and vulnerable household. Being delinked from the Consumer Price Index, there are no periodic upward revisions. It is time for the Union and state governments to have a dialogue on a living wage support for the elderly in need. Participatory identification of the genuine elderly in need of care by involving women's collectives and local governments may be the best approach to identification. Skilling agricultural labourers works well in a slightly lower age group where a person has many productive working years ahead. For those who have already reached 60 or very nearly there, the option of contributory pension schemes like Atal Pension Yojana is not there. A generation of non-literate, unskilled, ageing families need support from the State and civil society. Experiments with self-help groups of the elderly by the National Rural Livelihood Mission or by HelpAge India have been very effective, and it is time to focus on them. The 100 million women in 10 million women's collectives are an excellent example of social capital leading to diversification of livelihoods on scale. It is time a similar movement for elderly care is built around their social capital with civil society and corporate social responsibility supplementing the efforts of a caring, convergent State. Elderly collectives with community caregivers are the answer for sustainable geriatric care. Women's collectives have attracted the attention of all political parties in the states as they are also seen as active voters whose numbers make a difference. With time, the constituency of 60-plus non-literate, unskilled wanting lives of dignity is going to grow. They too will become an influential group like farmers and women. The elderly need urgent holistic support. They are already in large numbers in states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu with lower fertility rates and high life expectancy for some decades. While elderly care does not constitute a separate Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), better care for the elderly will facilitate the achievement of other SDGs such as those on poverty and health care. The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Gramin has given some dignity to the old, especially women as homeowners. Given the nuclearisation of households, we need to address the challenge of support for the vulnerable elderly. The urban areas throw up their own challenges in connecting households to public services. Public spaces for social and cultural engagement become very important in the context of the elderly. While some support through old-age homes and elderly care centres is there, given the growing size of the elderly and vulnerable, we will have to scale up our level of operations to be really a caring society. Local governments with flexible resources for community-based care are the way forward. Support for the elderly cannot be through centralised vertical initiatives. They must figure high in the work agendas of Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs) and the Community Resource Persons under the National Rural Livelihood Mission. Mobilisation of the elderly through elderly self-help groups or associations and facilitation of their social activities, with access to civil society support, can go a long way in improving the lives of those in need. Amarjeet Sinha is senior fellow, Centre for Social and Economic Progress. He is also on the governing board of HelpAge India. The views expressed are personal
