A report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India tabled in the Assembly on Monday pointed out various defects in the implementation of pension schemes and brought out cases in which ineligible candidates were given pension, while some eligible candidates were not considered for the scheme.
“Despite a 100% verification of pension eligibility in 2014, audit came across 118 ineligible beneficiaries receiving pension and 934 eligible beneficiaries not receiving pension, indicating the need for continuing periodical verifications,” the report stated.
Though the norms stipulated by the State government stated being a destitute was a precondition for sanction of pension under social security pension schemes, during joint verification, it was observed that in 15 cases, sons and relatives with whom the beneficiaries lived were in government service or receiving government pension, it pointed out.
As for sanction of widow and deserted women pension, the main criteria was that the beneficiary should be a widow or deserted but during joint verification it was found some pensioners were “living with their husbands” and it indicated “clear foul play in sanction.”
Several such defects in the implementation of pension schemes were flagged to the State government in October 2017 and until December 2017, the response was not received, the report said.
