The State government has announced its resolve to implement the enhanced Aasara pensions, social welfare pensions, for different categories of people with effect from June.
The decision forms part of TRS election manifesto wherein the party had promised significant enhancement in social welfare pensions as part of the social safety net strategy. The government had issued orders relating to the implementation of the new pensions on the first working day after the model code of conduct, which was operational from March 10 on account of elections, had been lifted on May 26.
Incidentally, this will be the first major policy decision by the State government since the last nine months, beginning from the day on which it announced the dissolution of the Telangana's legislative assembly on September 6. Accordingly, the pensions for , widows, weavers, toddy tappers, HIV/AIDS infected persons, beedi workers, single woman and filaria patients and old-age pensions had been more than doubled from ₹1,000 to ₹2,016 a month.
The pension paid to disabled had also been increased accordingly from ₹1,500 a month in the past to ₹3,016. The enhancement of the social security net would cost the government an additional ₹450 crore every year. The government, senior officials said, had been incurring ₹870 crore a month (little over ₹10,000 crore every year) and this would go up by another ₹40 crore every month.
The eligible beneficiaries will receive enhanced pensions from the month of July. There are over 39 lakh eligible beneficiaries covered under different categories of pensions at present. But the number is likely to rise significantly in the coming days as the government had decided to reduce the age limit for receiving pensions from 64 to 57.
According to sources, the reduction in age once effected would bring another six to seven lakh people under the social security net of the government once the enumeration of eligible beneficiaries is completed in all aspects.
