Fund crunch stalls schemes for senior citizens

Mumbai: With the state government going all out to promote the Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, hoping it will help the Mahayuti coalition to return to power, other populist schemes announced during the state budget have been placed on the backburner. These include the Mukhyamantri Tirth Darshan Yojana, a pilgrimage scheme, and the Vayoshree Yojana, a medical assistance scheme – both targetted at senior citizens. The government is trying to divert money from elsewhere to commence these schemes, but there is no clarity yet on when it might happen, said officials.
The Mukhyamantri Tirth Darshan Yojana entitles senior citizens whose family income is below ₹2.5 lakh per annum to free travel to pilgrimage spots within and outside the state. The government would spend ₹30,000 per beneficiary, it was announced during the presentation of the state budget in June this year. Until now, the government has received around 5,000 applications under the scheme.
The Vayoshree Yojana entitles senior citizens aged above 65 years to a one-time cash benefit of ₹3,000 towards expenditure on medical equipment such as lumber belts, knee braces and spectacles. The government has received over 600,000 applications under the scheme.
A senior official from the finance department who spoke on condition of anonymity said there is no budgetary allocation for either scheme as they have not received administrative approval.
“The pilgrimage scheme needs over ₹25 crore for the first phase, while the Vayoshree scheme needs ₹180 crore for the first phase. The social justice department had initially proposed to divert funds meant for Scheduled Castes for these schemes, but later, the decision was changed fearing a backlash. It has now been decided to divert money for the schemes from the Shravan Bal pension scheme, at least until budgetary allocations are made during the winter session,” the official said.
A senior official from the social justice department – the nodal department for implementation of both schemes – said they would be launched formally only after the finance department released the necessary funds.
“The response to the pilgrimage scheme has been low because of stringent conditions like forming a group or producing medical fitness certificates. The need for medical certificates for the Vayoshree scheme has also posed hurdles for beneficiaries,” he said. It would take at least a few weeks to launch the schemes, he added.