Thiruvananthapuram, August 7: Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday strongly criticised the UDF government’s decision to discontinue doorstep delivery of social security pensions through cooperative institutions, warning that the move would adversely affect elderly, differently-abled and economically vulnerable beneficiaries across Kerala.
In a Facebook post, Vijayan accused the government of dismantling a welfare distribution mechanism that had ensured pensions reached beneficiaries directly at their homes. He said Kerala’s social security pension delivery system had become a model for the country because of its accessibility to people unable to use conventional banking services.
Vijayan alleged that the government order stopping doorstep pension distribution through cooperative societies could be the first step towards gradually weakening the State’s welfare pension system.
According to him, a large section of beneficiaries receiving pensions at their doorstep instead of through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) remain outside the formal banking network. Many are elderly, differently-abled or economically and socially disadvantaged, making it difficult for them to visit banks or access other payment mechanisms.
Forcing such beneficiaries to find alternative ways to receive their pensions would impose an additional burden on people who require greater assistance from the State and society, he said.
Vijayan also accused the UDF government of adopting what he described as a right-wing approach towards welfare programmes by treating social security pensions as government charity rather than an essential social protection measure.
He said administrative changes in pension distribution should not come at the expense of vulnerable sections or make it harder for beneficiaries to access their entitlements.
Demanding an immediate reversal of the decision, Vijayan urged the government to withdraw the order and restore doorstep pension distribution through cooperative institutions for all beneficiaries who require the facility. He said the government should ensure that elderly and differently-abled pensioners were not subjected to unnecessary hardship while accessing their monthly social security benefits.
