Over 1 cr pensioners filed online life certificates in 8-10 months: Minister

Guwahati, Feb 23 (PTI) Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Monday said more than one crore pensioners across the country digitally submitted their life certificates in the last 8-10 months.

Singh, the minister of state for personnel, public grievances and pensions, said that the central government has been using technology to the maximum possible extent to give benefits to citizens.

"Earlier, applying for a pension was a complex job with multiple forms and NOCs. Nowadays, just one form is needed, and everything is online. A lot of rationalisation has taken place in the last 10-12 years," he said at a pension-related function here.

Various citizen-centric steps have been initiated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ease the discomfort of the retired persons, Singh said.

"Digital life certificate is one of such revolutionary steps. In the last 8-10 months, 1.11 crore face recognitions have been done. It has become a mass movement," he asserted.

The Union minister claimed that the Modi government has not made any new rules related to pensions, but removed the old and obsolete norms.

"The people who saw the Northeast before 2014 can understand the transformation in the region. The people's mindset has changed, and youths have started going outside the region," he added.

Singh asserted that the biggest contribution of PM Modi is "mainstreaming" of the Northeast with the rest of India.

The Union minister was speaking at the 58th Pre-Retirement Counselling (PRC) Workshop, Pensioners' Awareness Programme and Bankers' Awareness Programme, organised by the Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare.

Speaking on the occasion, BJP Lok Sabha MP Dilip Saikia said pensioners' role in society is very important.

"They retire after offering long service to society. Many people retire, but they are not tired. They always want to serve the motherland," he added.

Saikia claimed that a lot of work has taken place in the last 10 years in reforming the system, especially related to pensioners and their pensions. PTI TR TR BDC