Old-age pension being cut in the name of family ID, says Hooda
Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Thursday accused the BJP-JJP government of imposing cut on the old-age pension given as part of social security net to the elderly
Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Thursday accused the BJP-JJP government of imposing cut on the old-age pension given as part of social security net to the elderly.
The leader of Opposition, who was addressing a press conference after a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Wednesday, said the state government is imposing cuts on many welfare schemes, including old-age pension, in the name of family identity card – the Parivar Pehchan Patra (PPP).
“The government has promised to give monthly old-age pension of ₹5,100 but it is deducting the pension of a large number of elderly persons on the basis of family identity card,” Hooda said.
The Congress leader said many issues including unemployment, condition of farmers, crop compensation, waterlogging, pension deduction of the elderly, increasing crime, drug menace, illegal mining, scams, inflation, and poor state of education, health and roads were elaborately discussed in the meeting of the CLP.
The party MLAs also talked about raising problems of their respective constituencies in the upcoming budget session of the state assembly.
Hooda said the burden of debt and corruption on people is increasing continuously due to policies of the coalition government.
“Haryana has the highest unemployment, rising poverty, deep inequality, backbreaking inflation, deteriorating law and order, huge debt, economic slowdown, poor health facilities, falling education level, widespread corruption, social tension, terrible crime, insecurity of women, Dalits and weaker sections, besides challenges like pollution,” he said.
“This government has buried the state under a debt of ₹2.5 lakh crore. The government treasury is getting empty and due to scams of mining, liquor, registry, paddy and electricity meters, the government revenue is being pocketed by scamsters. Every section of the state is feeling cheated,” he said.
Hooda said farmers of Haryana are also facing bearing the brunt of government policies. “Farmers are facing waterlogging and crop damage due to unseasonal rains but the government has neither compensated the farmers for the loss caused in the Kharif season nor did they get the full girdawari done to find out damage caused in the Rabi season,” he said.
He also protested against the decision to ban the 10-year-old tractor used by farmers. “The farmer is not able to repay the loan for the tractor in 10 years and thus, the government should defend farmers on the issue in the National Green Tribunal (NGT).