J-K govt approves Aadhaar-linked payment mode for disbursal of pension

The Jammu and Kashmir government Saturday approved Aadhaar-linked payment mode for disbursal of pension to beneficiaries under various central and state sponsored schemes in order to ensure transparency and avoid delays, an official spokesperson said.

The decision was made when the state administrative council (SAC) met under chairmanship of Governor Satya Pal Malik in order to ensure transparency and avoid delays in disbursement of pension to eligible old-aged, widows and physically challenged persons, he said.

The SAC directed deputy commissioners (DC) would undertake rigorous re-scrutinisation of all the pending pension cases in their respective districts so that no eligible beneficiary is left out and denied the benefit of the pension schemes, the spokesperson said.

All eligible cases duly supported by Aadhaar numbers will be forwarded by the DCs to the respective directorates of social welfare by the end of this month, he added.

The spokesperson said the respective directorates of social welfare would ensure the process of Aadhaar seeding and consequent de-duplication and weeding out of ineligible cases is expedited and the process concluded by September 30 this year.

The SAC also directed the Social Welfare Department to compile, in addition, a list of all widows below 40 years of age who are not covered under the ongoing schemes, he added.

He said the Social Welfare Department is providing monthly pension to beneficiaries in the state under the two schemes - National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP), which is a blend of the Centre share and state share and the Integrated Social Security Scheme (ISSS).