Kodangal: Pensioners stage protest against goverment's delay in releasing Aasara pensions

Kodangal: The physically-challenged, widows and others, who have been receiving Aasara pension benefits from the State government, staged a protest at Mandal Parishad Development Office (MPDO) in Doulatabad mandal of Kodangal constituency on Friday and demanded the government to immediately release the pending pension dues.

According to protestors, the State government which has promised to provide the differently-abled with a pension of Rs 3,016 every month has stopped paying the pension for the last two months. With this, the beneficiaries took to roads and demanded the State government to immediately release their pending pension dues and relieve them off the financial burden.

Nearly 80 old aged persons and differently-abled from Kaudid village of Doulatabad mandal staged a protest in front of the MPDO office. They alleged that earlier the concerned authorities used to visit the village and distribute the pensions to the beneficiaries in their own village. However, now they have shifted the pension distribution c (BPM) to Nitoor village post office which is five kilometres away from Kaudid village. "For the last two months the authorities are not visiting our village to distribute pensions. It is becoming tough for the old aged and physically-challenged to travel five kilometres to get the pension. We have represented to the MPDO to take immediate measures to release our pending pension and urged the officials to distribute pension in our own village," said the protestors.

Reacting to the protest, the Mandal Parishad President (MPP) Vijay Kumar and vice-MPP Mahipal Reddy promised to take measures to release the pending pensions and ensure that the disabled people get their pensions in their own village from next month onwards.