The Jharkhand government is planning to launch a universal pension scheme for elderly, widows and disabled people.

Sources in the chief minister’s office said chief minister Hemant Soren is keen on announcing the universal pension scheme for elderly, widows and disabled on statehood day (November 15).

“There are over 2 million people in the state who are either disabled, widows or senior citizens. The chief minister wants all of them to get pension irrespective of their financial, family or caste status. The formal announcement would be done by the chief minister during statehood day which would make Jharkhand the only state in eastern India to have a universal pension scheme for the disabled, widows and elderly,” said a senior official at the CMO in Ranchi.

In June 2019, Bihar became the first state to launch a universal old-age pension scheme in which any person aged 60 years and above will get a sum of Rs 400 per month directly transferred to their bank accounts irrespective of their financial, family or caste status.

In other states, pension is provided to elderly, widows and physically challenged people only if they are living below poverty line or belong to Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes.

“The state social welfare department is working on the scheme. There will be a mechanism wherein beneficiaries, if they are not getting any other pension either from the state or the central government, will be entitled to get an amount between Rs 200 and Rs 300 per month. Monitoring would be done at the district level to avoid duplicity with the existing central government scheme,” the source said.

Under the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP), a BPL person aged between 60 and 80 years and above gets a pension of Rs 1,000 per month, after adding shares of both the central and state governments. Disabled BPL people aged between 18 and 79 years get a monthly pension of Rs 1,000, while BPL widows aged between 40 and 79 years also get a monthly pension of Rs 1,000.

“Once the universal pension scheme is launched, the criteria would not have restrictions based on income and age and would be applicable to all,” said a close aide of the chief minister.

Principal secretary, social welfare department, Avinash Kumar, confirmed the plan but refused to elaborate. “Yes there are plans on these lines but I would not like to speak much on it at the moment,” he said.

The Jharkhand Viklang Manch, an organisation espousing the cause of disabled people in the state, has started a campaign to tweet to chief minister Soren on his official Twitter handle reminding him about providing a monthly pension of Rs 2,500 to the disabled which was mentioned in the JMM election manifesto.

“The JMM had assured in its manifesto during 2019 Assembly polls that it will provide a pension of Rs 2,500 to all disabled people. We would like the chief minister to fulfil the promise on November 15,” said Arun Kumar, a founder member of the Manch.