Senior citizens, who turned up for the annual mustering exercise at the District Treasury inside the Collectorate on Monday, were in for a pleasant surprise. A temporary shed with shamiana was put up and they were served with buttermilk and water.
Every year, during the first week of April and May, pensioners are asked to turn up at the treasury to ensure that the pension is not being drawn for those who are not alive.
On an average, 1,000 pensioners will be visiting the treasury.
Petition
An official at the treasury said that the pensioners used to get tired and dehydrated, waiting at the treasury braving the soaring mercury level. Acting on a petition from the pensioners’ association, District Collector M. Karunagaran arranged through Public Works Department a shed and chairs for the waiting pensioners.
The treasury approached Jagannath Textiles, a private firm that has put up stalls for vending water and buttermilk free of cost at a couple of places in the city, and the firm readily agreed to have one such counter for the pensioners.
N. Vellingiri, a pensioner, said that the shelter and the buttermilk definitely provided the much required comfort for them, especially after a long travel. V.R. Vinayakam also welcomed the gesture and suggested that the official machinery simplified the procedures for speedy completion of transaction.
