From the next month, all the pensioners in Punjab are set to get the enhanced pension of Rs 1500, instead of Rs 750. For, the state’s Social Security, Women and Child Development Department has issued a notification for the same clearing decks for the two-fold hike in social security monthly pension from Rs 750 to Rs 1500 from July 1 onwards.
“The notification has paved way for doubling the pension for old age, handicapped persons, widow and destitute women besides dependent children in line with the State Government's commitment made during the budget session this year to ensure welfare of the deprived sections of the society to provide financial assistance to the tune of Rs 1,500 per month to all eligible beneficiaries covered under the social security pensions,” said an official spokesperson on Sunday.
Notably, to double the monthly pension from Rs 750 to Rs 1,500, a budgetary outlay of Rs 4,000 crore had been allocated during 2021-22, signifying an increase of 72 percent from 2020-21 budgetary expenditure of Rs 2,320 crore.
Meanwhile, the social security pensions, amounting to Rs 2,089 crore, were disbursed in 2019-20; and Rs 2,277 crore in 2020-21, which is three-fold of what was provided by the previous SAD-BJP government in the year 2016-17 — which is Rs 747 crore.
A total of 25.55 lakh beneficiaries, including 13 lakh beneficiaries belonging to the Scheduled Caste, have been provided pension during the year 2020-21.
The Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had recently announced free education upto graduation for all those children orphaned in the COVID pandemic, as well as families that have lost their breadwinning member from July 1, 2021 onwards.