Chief Minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy’s efforts to dilute pension distribution procedure seems to be back firing, after the Election Commission directed not to involve volunteers in this procedure. Though in view of ECI strict directions, the government made alternate arrangements for pension distribution, its efforts to provoke the public against the EC decision failing.
The attempt to engineer mass resignations by volunteers protesting for creating hurdles in their `duties’ received poor response. Moreover, the AP High Court dismissed a PIL challenging the order issued by the Election Commission suspending the distribution of pensions by volunteers in AP.
The High Court observed that pensions are being distributed in other states also, where there is no volunteer system. The High Court dismissed the petition after the Election Commission gave an explanation in the High Court that the Panchayati Raj Rural Development Department had issued guidelines on the distribution of pensions.
On the other hand, transactions in banks have started from Wednesday after a series of holidays. Even though it was announced on Tuesday that the pensions are being distributed in the secretariats from Wednesday, the cash has not reached the secretariats.
Even though Tuesday was a working day for the banks, the cash did not reach the village and ward secretariats as the government did not deposit the cash into the accounts. The state government has issued instructions to the village ward secretariats to take up the distribution from Wednesday.
However, the withdrawal of cash from the banks and their distribution did not start on Wednesday. The program of bringing cash from banks and giving it to the beneficiaries did not start on time on Wednesday morning. Beneficiaries arrived before the doors of the secretariats opened for pensions early in the morning.
Meanwhile, YCP leaders are trying to provoke aged beneficiaries of pensions against TDP, accusing that their complaints only led to all these problems. At some places they were taken to secretariats in a rally with black flags.
TDP is alleging that demonstrations and protests are being carried out for political purposes, even though they have said that pensions should be provided to the elderly and disabled at home. On the other hand, those who came to the secretariats for pensions are shivering due to the heat of the sun.
The state government has released Rs.1,951.69 crores to distribute pensions to a total of 65,69,904 beneficiaries across the state. This amount was deposited in banks by village and ward secretariats on Tuesday night. This cash has been deposited in the accounts of more than 15 thousand secretariats in the state. The Secretariat Admin Secretaries have to withdraw the cash and distribute it within the respective Secretariat.