Jharkhand: Married women faking age, becoming widows to avail old age pension

Chatra: There has been gross irregularity in the selection of beneficiaries under the State Social Security Old Age Pension Scheme (SSSOAPS). In the illusion of pension, women are taking advantage of the scheme by becoming widows. Most of such cases are being reported from Hunterganj block of Chatra district.
The age limit for availing pension is 60 years or more. Whereas in the above mentioned block there are more than a hundred people whose age is between 30 to 55 years and they are getting the benefits of the Old Age Pension Scheme. The beneficiary gets Rs 1000 every month. If an investigation is conducted, a big scam may come to light.
In the list of beneficiaries approved under SSSOAPS, the name of Visheshwar, father Doman Yadav, resident of Basaria village of Karma Panchayat of Hunterganj block is there.
The serial number in the list is -14895 (JH-S-07402980). According to the voter list, Visheshwar’s age is 38 years. To avail the benefits of this scheme one must be above 60 years of age.
“The matter is not in my knowledge. Only those with prescribed age limit will get the benefit of the scheme. Names of people who are below the eligibility criteria will be removed from the pension list,” said Vijay Ram, Assistant Director, Social Security, Chatra.
According to the voter list, the age of Kunti Devi, daughter of Jagdish Yadav of Basaria village of Karma Panchayat of Hattarganj block, is 26 years. They have been selected for old age pension under SSSOAPS. The serial number in the approved list is 14957 and her scheme approval number is-JH-S-07104860.
Experts say that there is a game in the acceptance of old age and widow pension in all the blocks of Chatra. In Hunterganj, 21,165 beneficiaries are getting old age pension under various schemes.
Among these, there are a large number of beneficiaries who do not fulfill the eligibility criteria. The pension has been approved with the connivance of Panchayat representatives and government employees.