Eligible UP senior citizens to get old-age pension benefits automatically, says minister Asim Arun

Lucknow, Oct 1 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Minister of State for Social Welfare (Independent charge) Asim Arun on Wednesday announced that eligible senior citizens in the state will soon receive the benefits of the old-age pension scheme automatically, with pension amounts transferred directly into their Aadhar-linked bank accounts.

Speaking at an event organised in Lucknow on the occasion of International Day of Older Persons, Arun said the Yogi Adityanath government is committed to the welfare of senior citizens and has simplified welfare schemes for their ease.

"Now, senior citizens will not have to run from office to office or fill out lengthy forms. The pension will reach them directly and automatically," he said.

The minister said the automatic detection of eligible beneficiaries would be done through the 'Family ID' -- a database of families with unique identification numbers, which is expected to get approval from the state government in three months.

Family ID is a 12-digit unique identification number carrying details of a family, serving as a central repository of family attributes to automatically determine their eligibility for government schemes and extend benefits to the missing beneficiaries. The database will be used by around one-and-a-half-dozen departments such as education, social welfare and labour that dole out direct benefit transfer (DBT).

The social welfare department currently has 67.50 lakh beneficiaries of old-age pension in the state, Deputy Director Amar Jeet Singh told PTI.

He said the beneficiaries of the scheme are mandatorily required to be 60 or above, and belong to the below poverty line (BPL) category. He said the beneficiary's annual income should not be more than Rs 46,080 in rural areas and Rs 56,460 in urban locations.

Singh said so far, there was a practice of manual verification done by officials in districts to ascertain which beneficiaries have died, but in future, there will be an Aadhar-based digital system in its place.

The International Day of Older Persons programme, held at Bhagidari Bhavan in Gomti Nagar under the aegis of HelpAge India and Senior Citizens' Federation of Uttar Pradesh, was centred on the theme 'AdvantAge60: Powering Aspirations -- Active, Capable and Empowered'.

Officials said the aim was to challenge stereotypes around ageing and highlight that life after 60 can be a phase of active participation, contribution and fulfilment.

On the occasion, 'Senior Achievement Awards' and 'Shravan Kumar Samman' were presented to several eminent personalities. Among the attendees was 102-year-old Hansidevi, according to an official statement.

On December 14, 1990, the United Nations General Assembly designated October 1 as the International Day of Older Persons. PTI KIS KSS KSS