UDF Move to End Doorstep Pension Distribution Is First Step Towards Weakening Welfare Scheme, Says Pinarayi Vijayan

Thiruvananthapuram: Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan has stated that the UDF government's decision to discontinue doorstep distribution of social security pensions through cooperative societies is the first step towards gradually dismantling the state's pension scheme.

In a statement, Pinarayi said the government's latest order mandates that, except for bedridden beneficiaries, all social security pensions will be disbursed only through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into Aadhaar-linked bank accounts. He argued that those who continue to rely on doorstep pension delivery are largely people outside the formal banking system, many of whom belong to economically weaker sections and face health-related challenges.

According to him, the doorstep pension system ensured that financial assistance reached beneficiaries directly at their homes and had benefited nearly half of all social security pension recipients over the past decade, excluding those who had voluntarily opted for DBT. He alleged that the government is now attempting to dismantle this system and accused it of treating social security pensions as a government concession rather than a right.

Pinarayi also rejected the government's justification that compliance with the Centre's DBT guidelines is necessary to secure central financial assistance. He said the Centre's contribution accounts for only about one per cent of the total monthly social security pension expenditure in Keralam and benefits only around 13.5 per cent of pension recipients, while the State bears the full cost for the remaining beneficiaries.

He claimed that the previous LDF government had resisted the Centre's directives on pension distribution to protect the welfare scheme, but alleged that the UDF government was now using those guidelines as an opportunity to weaken it.

Pinarayi demanded that the government immediately withdraw the order and restore doorstep pension distribution through cooperative societies for all beneficiaries who require the service.