IGNOAPS provides new boost for social assistance

Nov 20:   Prime Minister Manmohan Singh launched Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme in New Delhi on Monday to mark the 90 th anniversary of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

The scheme supports to provide a Rs 400 monthly pension to people over 65 years and living below poverty line.

This amount will be shared equally by the centre and states which will cost Rs 3772 crore and will cover 1.57 crore people.

Prime Minister urged all the states to come forward so that no one is left out. He said, “I would like all states to cooperate, increase their contribution to the benefits that are being given and ensure that no one deserving is left out.”

He revealed that the scheme will be reviewed in the near future to include widows and the handicapped and to extend to cover all those above 60 years of age.

“Our next step should be to widen the coverage to all vulnerable groups. There is merit in including widows and physically disabled in the ambit of social assistance. The old age pension scheme needs to be further extended to cover all those above 60 years. We hope to do this in future,” he added further.

Earlier under the National Old Age Pension Scheme the centre gave Rs 75 and the States Rs 25, but the scheme was available only to impoverished one.

Manmohan Singh hailed the occasion as a milestone for United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and one of key component in its strategy of inclusive growth.

A word of caution came from the Finance Minister P Chidambaram to check the leakage of funds while distributing the benefits to the deserving person.

Prime Minister held this as a small step towards the elders in the society from his government and said, “Ownership of the scheme and contribution to it by the state is necessary for the successful implementation of the scheme. I would like all states to own this scheme as their own, increase their contribution to the benefits that are being given and ensure that no one is left out,' the Prime Minister told a gathering, which also included senior citizens from different parts of the country.”

Enumerating the problem that many elderly people are facing due to urbanisation he said that the scheme is a demand driven social security programme and is not restricted by budget allocations.

This is an important step to provide social security to yesterday’s world to improve and add to their economic security.