Hyderabad: The TRS government is all set to fulfill its three major poll promises on the occasion of Telugu New Year (Ugadi) on April 2. The state government has decided to implement its long-pending promises of extending Aasara pensions to beneficiaries aged 57 years and above from April against 65 years at present, extend financial assistance of Rs 3 lakh each to poor to build 2BHKs on their own plots and returning money of women beneficiaries of Abhaya Hastham scheme along with interest amounting to Rs 545 crore.
Finance minister T.Harish Rao disclosed these details after launching development programmes in Siddipet district on Thursday.
Harish said that the state government will extend financial assistance of Rs 3 lakh to build 2BHKs in three installments after Ugadi.
Besides, the government will return Abhaya Hastham funds to women self help groups (SHGs) with interest totalling nearly Rs 545 crore within a week after Ugadi, he stated.
Reduction of age limit to avail Aasara pensions from 65 years to 57 years and extending financial assistance to poor to build 2BHKs on their own plots were the promises incorporated in the TRS manifesto for 2018 Assembly polls. However, they did not materialise even after the TRS government completed more than three years in office in the second term due to Covid and subsequent financial crisis.
The government invited applications for Aasara pensions for 57-plus aged people in November 2021. Eight lakh applications were received which are lying pending since then. These applicants will now start receiving Aasara pensions from April.
The previous Congress government in Undivided Andhra Pradesh launched Abhaya Hastham scheme in November 2009 to provide income security to women in their old age. The aim was to provide security to all enrolled SHG women with dignity in their old age. Under this, women were asked to contribute Rs. 365 per annum and the state government contributed its share of Rs. 365 per annum into their pension amount.
The interest that earned from corpus generated for each member till the completion of 60 years of her age was used for giving monthly pension from Rs. 500 to Rs. 2200 based on the age of the member.
Each enrolled member under the scheme was entitled to get a minimum pension
of Rs. 500 after completion of 60 years of her age and all the enrolled members between age group of 18 to 59 years are eligible to get Insurance coverage under PMJJBY scheme.
However, after TRS government came to power in 2014 it stopped this scheme on the ground that it was extending Aasara pension of Rs 2,016 per month to women which was higher than Abhaya Hastham pension. But, the funds contributed by women and state government from 2009 to 2014 accounted for over Rs 500 crore. Women are demanding for long to return their money.
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