CM Jagan Accuses Chandrababu of Hypocrisy Over Pension Distribution System

Pensioners in the state are facing difficulties again. Those who struggled with hardships back in 2014 now find themselves needing to stand in queues once more. The Election Commission has removed the responsibility of pension distribution from volunteers due to conspiracies by Chandrababu & Co. Consequently, pensioners have been experiencing troubles for the past three months. The distribution of pensions has particularly impacted elderly and disabled individuals who are unable to walk. However, starting from May 1, the government has begun depositing pension funds directly into beneficiaries’ accounts through DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer), leading many pensioners to flock to banks. Despite the severe heat, the necessity for these pensioners to visit banks has caused considerable distress among them.

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Staying at Home for 53 Months

Between 2014 and 2019, witnessing the difficulties faced by the elderly in accessing their pensions, Chief Minister Jagan implemented a new system that enabled volunteers to deliver pensions directly to beneficiaries’ homes. Over the past five years, this system has successfully delivered pensions to nearly 6.549 million recipients each month through volunteers, who withdrew the funds from banks. However, Chandrababu Naidu and his team opposed this system, resulting in pensioners enduring long waits at banks. Nimmagadda Ramesh Choudhary revealed that there were directives to make pension payments directly into the bank accounts instead of home deliveries. In light of these developments, Chandrababu has been accused of hypocrisy, as he now advocates for the continuation of home delivery of pensions, seemingly shedding crocodile tears over the issue.

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Complaint Filed with Election Commission

While volunteers had been distributing pensions to beneficiaries at their homes monthly, the implementation of the election code introduced a complication due to the Telugu Desam Party (TDP). The TDP sent letters to the Election Commission (EC) arguing against home delivery of pensions. In response to a formal complaint made by TDP leaders who visited Delhi in March this year, the EC issued orders to stop the distribution process at homes. As part of these orders, the EC also directed the confiscation of mobile phones used by volunteers for distributing pensions and coordinating related activities. This move disrupted the routine of many who had been receiving their pensions effortlessly for nearly five years. Now, TDP leaders, having forced pensioners to go to banks to collect their pensions, are shifting the blame onto the government.