Divyangjans demand release of funds in pension scheme, staged protest in Guwahati

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: The Divyangjans who have been deprived of the 'Deendayal Divyangjan Pension Scheme' staged a protest in front of the Directorate of Social Welfare here on Wednesday.

The protest was staged under the banner of the Pratibandhi Suraksha Sangstha, Assam (PSSA).

"We have to protest regularly to get the funds sought by the Social Welfare department for the payment of pension to persons with disabilities. Under the Deendayal Divyangjan Pension Scheme, disabled persons are paid Rs 1,000 as monthly pension. However, the beneficiaries have not received the amount from October 2020 to March 21 due to the negligence of the Social Welfare Department," said PSSA secretary Nripen Malakar.

Highlighting the plight of the Divyangjans, Malakar stressed that after continuous protests, the Department released some pending amount as a first instalment. But around 55,000 Divyangjans have not yet received a single penny from the pending amount, he added.

"We didn't get any result by demonstrating today. Thus, we locked the gate of the Department as a mark of our protest," said Malakar.

The demonstration was withdrawn after the Deputy Director of the Social Welfare Department gave a written assurance to the protestors that before May 3, the pending amount will be released. The PSSA underlined that they will stage intense agitations if the amount is not transferred into the beneficiaries' account before the mentioned date.

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