The old people in a district in Andhra Pradesh are experiencing boundless joy through an arts and pension program. Each morning, when they receive their pension money, their faces light up with smiles and they generously offer blessings to those who visit them. This sense of well-being is further celebrated as local leaders make it a point to check on each senior citizen’s health during their visits.
The pension distribution initiative, especially active in the Kakinada Rural, Prattipadu, Jaggampet and Tuni constituencies of the joint East Godavari districts, begins early at 5 am. Previously, under the former government, seniors were granted a pension of Rs 3,000 per person. However, Chandrababu Naidu, the chief of the Telugu Desam Party, has now increased this amount to Rs 4,000 after coming to power, fulfilling a campaign promise. For the last three months, each elderly individual has been receiving an additional Rs 1,000 per month, totalling Rs 7,000, much to their delight.
Unlike before, when volunteers would deliver pensions door-to-door, the current method involves personal visits by local MLA Yanamala Divya, daughter of former minister and senior Telugu Desam Party leader Yanamala Ramakrishnudu. During her visits, she not only hands out the pensions but also inquires about the residents’ health and general well-being, adding a personal touch to the pension distribution.
Moreover, in a show of gratitude and celebration, many locals are offering milk to the cutout of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, expressing their happiness for the kept promises. MLA Yanamala Divya joined elderly women in this gesture, underscoring the commitment fulfilled. This pension distribution event saw the participation of MLAs, ministers and MPs and started early in the morning across the districts of Kakinada, Rajahmundry and Amalapuram.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on July 1 gave the go-ahead for the distribution of social security pensions worth Rs 4,408 crore under the NTR Bharosa Pension Scheme.
Terming it as the beginning of a new chapter in welfare, he stressed that the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) had made life difficult for the people and caused a lot of trouble for the pensioners.
The monthly pension expenditure would be around Rs 33,100 crore henceforth, Naidu said, recalling that the TDP government under N.T. Rama Rao had started providing pensions to the poor in 1994-95 when it was only Rs 35 per month.
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