Alive pensioners marked ‘dead’, out of social security umbrella in Rajasthan

In one year, 13 lakh pensioners have been ‘excluded’. Many pensioners, who are alive, have been marked dead, many others removed after being put under the category of “out of state”.

“Computer has killed me. I request you to please make me alive again.” This is the concluding sentence of Kanchan Devi’s application to the Block Development Officer (BDO) in Kishangarh, Rajasthan. In March 2022, the widow pension that she received from the Rajasthan government was abruptly discontinued. On enquiry, she was told that she has been marked “dead” in the system.

Since, then Ms. Devi has reached out to the administration, from the BDO to the officials at the State capital in Jaipur. But no one is listening to her. She has a son who works as an assistant at a tea shop and she works in the marble industry. But work was never consistent and the pension was the only constant income for her. 

Also read: Pension delay, 90-year-old woman in Kerala stages protest on road

But Ms. Devi’s story is not unique. 

The heavily wrinkled face of Paani Deva, 74, breaks into a smile when she is asked if she ever lived away from her village, Shahpura in Beawar district. She lifts her voluminous brown skirt, to point at her swollen knee. She walks with a limp, leaning on the walking stick, awkwardly dragging her bad leg. 

She doesn’t remember any instance when she has lived away from her village for a long duration. But the State administration thinks otherwise. She has been denied old-age pension, since the system records her as “out of state”. Ms. Deva lives by herself and is dependent on the generosity of her neighbours to feed her and take care of her. 

She, along with Ms. Devi, was speaking at a press conference in Delhi on “Mass Digital Exclusions of Social Security Pensioners in Rajasthan” on Tuesday afternoon. 

The magnitude of the problem started emerging in May 2023, during the Mehngai Rahat Shivirs (digital camps) by the State government. The social security pension beneficiaries were invited to get registered here.

“I was sitting at the helpdesk at many of these camps. Among the beneficiaries, there were many complainants who had not been getting pensions. Out of Kishangarh Block, 600-650 beneficiaries have been removed after being marked as ‘out of state’ and another 100-150 beneficiaries who are alive, have been marked as dead,” said Noratma,l who works with Pension Parishad in the State.

Further investigations by the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) and civil society groups revealed that in a year, 13 lakh beneficiaries, who were receiving social security pension for widows, elderly and disability, have been excluded from the system. There are 1 crore such beneficiaries in the State. Rajasthan is the only State in the country that has a legal backing for the pension. The previous government, headed by Congress leader Ashok Gehlot, brought in a law, ensuring a 15% hike each year in pension. 

“These people are not only economically marginalised, they are also physically marginalised because of their age and disability. They have nowhere to go and no other means to earn a living,” Nikhil Dey, founder member of MKSS said. Many of these “wrongful exclusion”, Mr. Dey said, is because of a mismatch between their data on Aadhaar card and their details on the government portal. Or because their biometrics, fingerprints and iris are no longer viable proofs of their existence.

After several rounds, the State administration has told Ms. Devi that since her account has been inactive for two years, nothing can be done. She should apply afresh. Pointing at such cases, Mr. Dey said, “If beneficiaries like her open a fresh account, then the government in a way is shrugging off its responsibility. We are demanding that accountability should be fixed on the person who marked her as dead. She should also be given compensation and arrears for the duration that she was denied pension.”

Development economist Dipa Sinha said that the problem of exclusion is a result of technological interventions replacing human processes. “The outlay for social security pensions has remained the same for the last 10 years without accounting for inflation,” Ms. Sinha said. Along with inflation, the number of eligible beneficiaries is also rising. To keep the expenditure the same, many beneficiaries are excluded. “The solution is not tinkering the software but increasing local accountability,” she added. 

Rajasthan Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Avinash Gehlot told The Hindu that each year, a physical verification of the pensioners is done, which in the urban areas is done by the SDM and in rural areas by the BDO.

“We have nearly 1 crore beneficiaries availing social security pensions. Each year, a small number of them, owing to death or moving out of the state, is removed from the beneficiary list. The recent claim that many of them have been wrongfully removed is not entirely correct. So far, we have only found seven such cases and directions have already gone to the District Collector to restore their pension and also to send them arrears,” he said.

Published - October 29, 2024 08:58 pm IST