Summary Report of 8 State Study on Implementation of National Social Assistance

Programme

Study conducted by Tata Institute of Social Sciences and Pension Parishad

February 2015Background

Poverty among the elderly, widowed, disabled and other disadvantaged but relatively less visible groups have taken centre stage in debates around social protection policies and programmes in recent years in the developing country context. Non-contributory public funded social security pensions have emerged as one of the effective strategies to manage and reduce individual as well as household poverty. The benefits of such social-assistance programmes have been much lauded. It has been argued that, ‘non-contributory pension programmes reduce poverty among the elderly and their households, enable investment in human and physical capital within beneficiary households, strengthen intergenerational solidarity and transfers, insure poorer rural communities against the adverse effects of agricultural reform and encourage local economic activity.’(Barrientos 20031)

Over the last few years a number of studies have been conducted to assess the situation of the elderly in India and to evaluate the performance of National Social Assistance Programmes which provide pensions to the elderly in the country. In addition to old age pensions, studies have also looked at pensions for widows and persons with disability. Notable among these are the PEEP survey2 which was conducted in 10 states in the country focussing on performance of entitlement programmes including NSAP. As part of the PEEP study Pudussery and Chopra (2014)3 find that pensions are well targeted, leakages are low except for small bribes given during the sanctioning stage. The PEEP survey findings are largely in sync with those of an earlier study conducted by Howes et al (2010)4 which compares NSS data with survey data in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. This study found that pensions accrue to poorer than richer households thereby indicating that they are well targeted and reach the most vulnerable and that the levels of leakages are lower compared to other social safety net programmes such as the public distribution system.

The World Bank has conducted an in-depth household survey5 in Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh with an aim of capturing data on three parameters used to judge program performance i.e. coverage (what percentage of the targeted population actually benefits from the scheme), targeting (do the schemes benefit the poor and the vulnerable) and payments and leakages therein (i.e. whether pension beneficiaries receive the payment in full, regularly and on time). This study was preceded by a set of rapid implementation reviews done for the Ministry of Rural Development by the World Bank in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. Areas studied included implementation architecture, criteria used for eligibility, application, verification, sanction and payment processes. The study aimed to identify obstacles to effective program

1 Barrientos, A. (2003), What is the impact of non-contributory pensions on poverty? Estimates from Brazil and South Africa. CRPC Working Paper No. 332Dreze, J and Khera, R. (2014) Water for the Leeward India, Outlook, March 24 2014 http://www.outlookindia.com/article/Water-For-The-Leeward-India/2898013Pudussery, J and Chopra, S (2014) Social Security Pensions in India, An assessment, EPW Volume XLIX no 194Howes, S, Murgai, R and Dutta, P. (2010) Small but Effective: India’s Targeted Unconditional Cash Transfers, EPW Vol XLV No. 525 Forthcoming publications.

delivery and recommend improvements drawing on citizen and state experience.

A situational analysis of the elderly was conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India in 2011 which provides broad demographic and socio-economic trends and patterns among the elderly across the country. Another study which looks at the demographics of population ageing in India was conducted by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) (2012) in 7 states in India which have a higher proportions of elderly.

Other studies that present state specific findings include Sanso’s (forthcoming) study of the situation of the elderly in 2 villages of Tamil Nadu. Another study by Gupta (2013)6 in two districts of Jharkhand and Chhatisgarh reveals difficulties pension beneficiaries face in accessing their pension payments and the strain of facing delays in disbursement of an already meagre pension amount.

Rationale for the study

In March 2013, a Task Force constituted by the Ministry of Rural Development recommended restructuring social pension programs in India by way of their expansion, increasing the amount of pension assistance and relaxing eligibility rules. Simultaneously the Pension Parishad - a network of society groups and organizations in India working towards a more inclusive social security system for the poor- has been campaigning for universalizing pensions for the unorganized sector, increasing both the amounts and the coverage of existing pension schemes, indexing pension amounts to inflation and for transparent and timely delivery.

Taking cognizance of the campaign for universal social security, the Planning Commission recommended an extensive survey that captures the status of NSAP implementation across all states was required. The study that was proposed therefore was conducted jointly by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and Pension Parishad and seeks to understand the functioning of the several social security pension programmes from the perspectives of the actual and potential beneficiaries of these schemes, as well as the district, block and village level administrators and elected Panchayati Raj Institution representatives, responsible for implementing the social security pension programmes in eight states – Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Assam, West Bengal, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Haryana. A need to recognise innovations introduced not just at the state level but by a number of districts and sub-district levels as well was also expressed and have been captured in this study.

Coverage and methodology

The study was undertaken by student volunteers, faculty members, NGO and other groups actively engaged in this sector, in the months of May-June 2014 over eight states. Two of the most backward districts in each of these states – Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Assam, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana 6Gupta, A (2013) Old Age Pension Scheme in Jharkhand and Chhatisgarh, EPW Vol XLVIII No. 34

and Kerala were selected. The districts were selected based on literacy rates provided in the 2011 census. The underlying assumption is that the districts with the poorest adult literacy rates are also developmentally backward. In all, 59 villages and hamlets in 14 districts and 14 blocks/mandalas were covered.

State District, Block Block/Mandal Panchayat Number of Villages/Hamlets

Andhra Pradesh

Kurnool Atmakur Karivena, Siddhapuram 4

Telangana Mahbubnagar Ghattu Ghattu, Mallapuram, Yellamdoddi, Thumalpalli, Siddonipalli Thanda

6

Kerala Wayanad Mananthavady Thirunelli, Edavaka 7Trivandrum Parassala Poovar, Parassala 4

Assam Darang Sipajhar Gorukuthi, Sipajhar 4

Barpeta Barpeta Keutkuchi, Patbaukhi 4West Bengal

Purulia Hura Lakhanpura, Lalpur 4Birbhum Mohammad Bazar Gonpur, Bharkatta 4

Haryana Mewat Taoru Chilawalli, Jalalpursohna, Dingerheri

3

Palwal Hathin JalalpurHathin, Bichpuri, Mamloka

3

Rajasthan Sirohi Abu road Nichlagarh, Delda 4Jalore Jaswantpura Mandoli, Thur 4

Gujarat Dahod DevgharBariya Dangariya, Bara 4Panchamahal Shehara Waghjipur, Dhamnod 4

8 14 14 33 59

Viewpoints about social security pensions were sought from the beneficiaries and potential beneficiaries of the social security programmes through focus group discussions with nearly 1400 individuals from impoverished households in eight states. 109 focus group discussions were held. Some issues were further explored through in-depth interviews with 92 present and potential beneficiary villagers. 56 interviews were conducted with government administrative officials responsible for implementing the programme.

Among the participants and respondents 70% were women, 30% were men. 20% SC, 29% ST, 22% OBC, 11% Muslims, 4% Christians and 59% had BPL cards. Some of the participants were the beneficiaries and potential beneficiaries of social security pension schemes.

Socio-Economic Profile of Respondents

State Women Men SC ST OBC/BC Muslims Christians BPL Card holders

Andhra Pradesh

93 16 46 26 37 -- -- 93

Telangana 103 26 14 46 61 -- -- 103Kerala 108 52 10 49 21 5 38 114West Bengal

95 60 24 59 24 -- -- 72

Haryana 97 59 24 -- 25 86 -- 27Rajasthan 130 65 63 74 12 19 -- 134Gujarat 95 26 23 47 47 -- -- 61Assam NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA

721 304 204 301 227 110 38 604

Findings

The study, through its triangulation of secondary research on pension processes, focus group discussions with pensioners and interviews with officials attempts to understand the three stages of applying for and receiving a pension. The findings are broadly divided in the following categories; eligibility and application procedures, sanctioning procedures and payment disbursement and monitoring and grievance redress.

I Eligibility and Application Procedures

The findings related to eligibility and application procedures are as follows; obfuscation over eligibility criteria over central and state pension schemes, dependence on external agencies to obtain and complete application form, high costs to collect supporting documents and significant transaction costs to complete application procedures.

1.1 The All Pervasive Below Poverty Line

As established above, one of the key eligibility criteria for assistance from central government pension schemes is ‘Below Poverty Line’ (BPL). This remains a pervasive identity and eligibility criteria for most social welfare programs of the government although the severe inadequacy of using this method7 to select potential beneficiaries has been well established. Before detailing findings on eligibility criteria and application procedures, the overarching criteria in terms of perception is one of possession of the BPL cards. The study confirms that there is exclusion on two levels.

7Alkire, Sabina and Seth, Suman (2013). “Identifying BPL Households, A Comparison of Method”. Economic and Political Weekly, 2 (48). 12 January.http://www.epw.in/system/files/pdf/2013_48/02/Identifying_BPL_Households.pdfDreze and Khera (2010). “The BPL Census and a Possible Alternative. Economic and Political Weekly, 9 (45). 27 February.http://www.epw.in/special-articles/bpl-census-and-possible-alternative.htmlHirway, Indira (2003). “Identification of BPL Households for Poverty Alleviation Programmes”.Economic and Political Weekly. 45 (42). 8 November.http://www.epw.in/discussion/identification-bpl-households-poverty-alleviation-programmes.html

First a proportion of eligible persons with BPL cards are still excluded from the pension schemes. In Gujarat only 30% of those who had BPL cards were receiving pensions. Secondly, is the better known exclusion due to several poor and vulnerable persons being left out of BPL classification. In Barpeta panchayat, Assam, respondents of focus group discussion held that the last BPL survey had excluded many poor people whose names did not feature in the BPL list. In Dangariya panchayat, Dahod district, Gujarat, it was found that many poor, tribal households did not have BPL cards and thus could not avail of old age pensions. Although some of these households owned land, the fact that these fields were unproductive and forest covered, meant that the families were impoverished and many women despite their age were dependent on wage labour and collecting wood for livelihood. Elderly women said that size and type of land owned as well as number of sharers/co-owners of such land, should be considered for determining BPL status. The situation in Assam is even more acute with a very high proportion of eligible beneficiaries, in possession of a BPL card not receiving pension.

State

Have BPL card and receive

pension

Have BPL card and don’t

receive pension

Total

West Bengal 21 44 65Kerala 65 35 100Haryana 12 15 27Rajasthan 125 3 128Andhra Pradesh 104 5 109Telangana 97 28 125Assam 6 141 147Gujarat  11 44 55TOTAL 441 315 756

Note: The missing values in this table are either because the study team was unable to capture proof of BPL status or the respondents had APL cards.

While states have attempted to expand coverage through state schemes to supplement the central scheme, only the states of Kerala and Rajasthan have moved to a system where BPL is not required as an eligibility criteria. In these states it was found that exclusion though present was lesser than the other states. This is a key finding vis a viz eligibility criteria and inclusion of the correct potential beneficiaries.1.2 Identification of Potential BeneficiariesSome states reported pro-active initiatives by the state and local government to identify potential beneficiaries. However these are not conducted in a regular and predictable manner. The current set of initiatives can be seen as supplementary and piecemeal instead of systematic and institutionalised. However West Bengal and AP present compelling examples of comprehensive databases that can be used for identification and checking eligibility. In Haryana, ‘Khula Darbars’ are organised twice or thrice a year where the bulk of applications are received in the panchayat. In Kerala, in both the districts surveyed (Thiruvananthapuram and Wayanad), ‘pension adalats’ had been

conducted by the state government along with the Local Self Government Department in the period between December 2013- March 2014. In Rajasthan, camps were set up in various parts of the district to facilitate the process of identification and application. However, no systematic periodic surveys are undertaken to identify beneficiaries. In Andhra Pradesh too, the Government does seem to conduct camps and programmes for identification of pension beneficiaries, but these are not fixed or regular. Andhra Pradesh stood out for the regularity with which it conducts gram sabhas every three months during which potential beneficiaries are identified. In West Bengal, in 2005, a survey was conducted for the identification of BPL households. This information is stored in the Rural Household Survey (RHS) database. After this there has been no reported identification exercise. However, the information in this database enables the automatic inclusion of persons once they turn 60. However, respondents in the FGDs seemed to have little faith in this system which continued to leave out many eligible pensioners.

In Assam, most people interviewed in the villages admitted that they had no idea on how identification of beneficiaries happened. Contrary to claims by officials, of beneficiaries' lists being prepared at Gram Sabha meetings under supervision of district level officers, not one participant shared that their name had been selected through such collective processes.

In Gujarat, there are no periodic surveys or proactive efforts to identify beneficiaries. Eligible pensioners are expected to come forward themselves. Officials at the district level on the other hand presented a rosier picture. They explained that camps were held (true, but not at regular intervals) in the district Government hospitals for preparing medical certificates which applicants with disability would receive within one month. District officials in Dahod said that NGOs had also been engaged in the identification of eligible beneficiaries such as the Blind Welfare Council.The EM in Panchmahal said regular identification exercises are done by the Talathi8. The District Social Defence Officer (DSDO) added that anganwadi workers along with the talathi help create awareness and facilitate application camps at the village level.1.3 Application Procedures and Eligibility CriteriaApplication procedures in all states are complex and daunting for the typically poor and illiterate pension applicant. With the multiplicity of eligibility criteria, documents often have to be obtained from different authorities. With the exception of Kerala, in all other states the administration had made no arrangements to provide assistance to the applicant in filling and submitting the pension application form. This leads to applicants relying on others in the village, often at an additional cost.

In Rajasthan, application forms are distributed free of cost at the panchayat meetings, Rajiv Sewa Kendras or the post office. These forms are free of cost. In

8The Talathi is a revenue officer and secretary of the Gram Panchayat. Often due to vacant posts often a talati is given charge for more than one Panchayat more often two Panchayats , in all up to 3-4 villages.

various cases, the panchayat members, gram sewaks assist people in the application process. However, the people are expected to procure and submit the supporting documents themselves such as BPL card, voter ID card, Aadhar Card and in cases of disability, a disability certificate from the health center and four passport photos also required. Acquiring these documents is noted to be financially taxing and tiresome to the point where people were discouraged to not apply for a pension at all.In Gujarat, a criteria of scoring and mapping to the BPL list is followed. Although there is a clear cut eligibility criteria for those on the BPL list, being on the list is no guarantee of actually getting a pension. The composition of FGD participants indicates that even if they meet the eligibility norms such as widowhood and BPL status, the pension is not guaranteed. The low coverage was apparent through the composition of the focus group discussions where although 50% of the total participants had a BPL card, only 29% of them received a pension.In Haryana, application forms are officially available at the block office for free but at times Sarpanch brings forms from the office and makes it available to the people. The completed forms, attested by the Sarpanch along with the required documentation are submitted either to the Sarpanch or directly to the BDPO. The Medical Officers of Public health centers may also accept the forms and direct them to the BDPO. The MO (Medical Officer) receives a collective receipt of the submitted forms from the BPDO. Mostly the applicants, being illiterate, rely on others to fill the forms. It is worth noting that Tuesday is the fixed day for estimation of age at the PHCs. Applications were not entertained on any other day. Potential beneficiaries were being charged for forms that are supposed to be made available free of cost.

In Assam almost all participants interviewed said that application process required money, time and efforts which is why some of them chose to not apply at all. In AP & Telengana, most people get their application forms at the Mandal office but require help in filling them. Medical certificates necessary for a disability pension are obtained from the software SADAREM (Software for Assessment of Disabled for Access, Rehabilitation and Empowerment). Respondents spoke of the difficulty in attending the SADAREM camps to obtain the certification.

In Kerala, the application procedure involves filling in the application form (available free of cost at the panchayat) and submission of the photocopies of necessary documents. Most people were assisted by the tribal promoter/ ward member/ Anganwadi worker, while filling up the forms and making available necessary documents. The forms were submitted to the panchayat in person, and some of them were accompanied by the ward member or one of the para professionals while doing so. The Edavaga panchayat of Wayanad had set up a formal facilitation centre cum help desk for filling the application forms. In the case of the Agriculture Labour Pension, it is the agricultural union members who facilitate pension application. The union is politically affiliated, hence those who apply for this pension feel obliged to the party concerned. In a few cases, people have reported paying money to get their application forms filled, particularly so in remote tribal pockets. Similarly, those who have had to apply twice or thrice

before getting their pensions sanctioned recall having to travel to the panchayat office 5-6 times to enquire about the status of their application.

1.4 Updating of Pension ListsInterviews with officials in all states suggest that there are established procedures for deleting names from the pension lists, some which are triggered only when voluntary declarations are made by the family members of the deceased or by intimations from the payment agencies. Another set of procedures are more proactive and involve conducting annual verification exercises. It is important to note however that people seemed unaware of these processes and the common perception in that this is an ad-hoc exercises that are not transparent and participatory. In Rajasthan, there is no established procedure for updating pension lists. The family members of pension beneficiaries are expected to come forward themselves in the event of death. District officials in Jalore said that the Gram Sewaks are entrusted with the responsibility of keeping track and update the higher authorities who in turn, update the lists.In Gujarat, according to the Talathi in Dahod, there is an annual verification process where the Executive Magistrate’s office undertakes a process by which a check is ordered every year whether a widow has remarried or not, or if pensioners have deceased. District officials in Dahod confirmed the exercise of updating lists. After interviewing officials it seems that the Talathi is primarily responsible for updating the list.

In Haryana identification is dependent on the voluntary disclosure of the people. Sometimes, the Government publishes an advertisement in the newspapers regarding the updating or including new eligible pension-seekers' names in the beneficiary list. The sarpanch might inform the BDPO about the new or eliminated beneficiaries. If a beneficiary is absent during the distribution of the pension continuously for 2 months or more, a team from the D.S.W.O. (District Social Welfare Office) goes to the village to verify. If some pension holder has died or has left the place forever, the team takes the signature of government workers like aanganwadi sevika along with the remarks of the Sarpanch. Subsequently the lists are updated. There is no specific exercise for updating of pension lists.

In Assam, they were told that they would just say that people on the current list need to die for new people to be added and it was very clear that there was no system of knowing when and how the lists would get updated. This clashed with the official version about lists being updated periodically and being shared with all. In fact this lists are supposed to be available at the Gram Panchayat offices and Block offices from where people can seek information.

In West Bengal, as per the DPRDO (District Panchayat and Rural Development Officer), in the beginning of each year the list of beneficiaries has to be sent to the Finance department from the RHS database list. Once the person turns 60 that person is added to the list and the list is sent to the department. But the experience with people suggested that the automatic updation of the list is not

taking place and even after turning 60 and possessing the BPL card many people are still denied Pensions. Even if the updation happens at the State level in the SEWA software, no proper mechanism has been in institutionalised so as to communicate this to the beneficiary.

In AP and Telengana, The pension lists are generally updated through information that comes in from the gram sabhas, or when government officials notify, or through voluntary disclosures made by people. The APO and PD of DRDA said that postal department notified updates (such as the death of a pensioner, or the change of address of a pensioner) to the pension list by sending it to the MPDO.

II. Sanctioning Procedures

While pensioners and administrators were still slightly more aware of application and payment procedures, the process between the application and the sanctioning of a pension still appears to be largely opaque for pensioners and administrators and PRI representatives alike. The ease with which researchers were able to understand the existence of a sanctioning procedure was varied across states which reflected to some extent the convoluted nature of the procedures itself. There are no enforceable timelines or a standard procedure to ascertain the stage of ones’ application. It is also evident that there are inbuilt systems of discretion to either award or discontinue a pension over and above meeting eligibility criteria.

2.1 Sanctioning Process

In Kerala, panchayat clerks, the district section and finance officers had clarity on the process. There are 3 things to note here; one that applications are undertaken only after a certain minimum number have been received, recent government orders have reinforced the panchayat council as the sole authority to verify and approve pension applications and the role of the district office is primarily to process payments.

The panchayat initiates the process of verification and subsequent sanction is undertaken only after receiving 10-15 pension applications at the panchayat level. This itself is a first cause of delay that we suspect exists across states. There are appointed officials who verify eligibility as per norms. At this stage those who do not meet the age criteria are removed. The list of verified beneficiaries is presented at the Panchayat Council. The primary reason for rejection of applications at the panchayat level are discrepancies of age recorded in various official documents and not fulfilling the age and income criteria. This list is to be read out at the Gram Sabha and forwarded to the district, however this was not corroborated in the focus group discussion.

Where earlier, pension applications could be received at the district as well, since March 2014, only those pensions which have been verified by the panchayat are accepted. Thus the district deals not with applications and supporting documents but with a list of verified and approved beneficiaries. At

the district, people are aware of two sections; M & K. M section checks the applications and forwards it for processing to the office of the District Collector. Once the District Collector approves, the sanctioning process is complete. This list is then transferred to the K section for fund release.

In terms of applicant perspective, there is no enforceable timeline from the time the application has been submitted. Panchayat bodies may not meet regularly to process the pension applications. In Poovar GP for instance, the panchayat Standing and Executive Committee had not been meeting regularly due to internal political turmoil due to which processing of pension applications had been considerably delayed during the past one year.

In West Bengal, the applications are submitted to the panchayat which is also responsible for verification of the applicant. These are then forwarded to the block level where the documents are verified.Though claims are made by all the authorities about the physical verification of the eligible beneficiaries and a medical check up of all the persons with disabilities, the experience on the ground was that no such camps or physical verification is taking place. This is leading to the exclusion of the PWD and elderly persons from the pension schemes.

In Haryana it was found that officials had clarity of the steps involved for sanctioning. The Sarpanch or the Medical Officer forwards applications to the Block office. Pensioners may also approach the block directly. These are reviewed here and verified by an official from the district though it is unclear how this is done.

In Gujarat, the CEM is the sanctioning authority. Once documents are submitted, the junior clerk in the CEM’s office verifies and sends it to the DSDO. Applications are then sent to the Treasurer’s Office for sanctioning. The junior clerk at the DSDO’s office indicated that another round of verification of documents takes place before the applications are sent to the treasury office. The DSDO in Panchmahal stated that he “looks into” widow and disability pension but the CEM is the final sanctioning authority. The team was unable to ascertain whether there was an additional level of verification by the DSDO’s officer before the CEM sanctions. The CEM in Panchmahal stated that he had not rejected a single pension application till date.

In West Bengal, once the physical verification is complete, the documents are sent at the District level from there to the State level, the final sanctioning authority in this case. However, the identification of beneficiaries for Old Age Pension schemes takes place through a Software called the SEWA software. This is maintained at the State level and no intermediary authority has a say in it.

In Andhra Pradesh and Telengana, after the Gram Sabha recommend eligible persons, the MPDO organises Gram Sabhas to collect applications. The average time period between identification and sanctioning is 2-3 months. The MPDO himself then sanctions the pensions and uploads it onto a digital system for transfer to the DRDA at the district level. The sanctioning authority for all

pensions, in favour of eligible persons recommended by the Gram Sabha. In an urban context, the Municipal Commissioner is the sanctioning authority in respect of all pensions, in favour of eligible persons recommended by the Municipal Ward Sabha.

2.2 Timelines Information Conveyed to Applicant

In Kerala, although panchayat officials maintained that the process of verification and sanctioning takes approximately 45 days at their level (with the rest of the delay occurring at the district), people reported that it takes upto six months. In Rajasthan, the stipulated time period for sanction process is 90 days however, the prevalent cases where the applicants had not received pension even after 90 days. Responses in the FGDs indicated that the sanctioning of pensions and actual disbursement of payment takes upto six month from the date of application.

After processed at the district, the rejection of an application is not communicated to the applicant. In Kerala, earlier, the sanctioning was intimated to the applicant by post but this has been discontinued. As a result applicants have no way of ascertaining whether their application has been sanctioned. Some of them make frequent visits to the panchayat, others wait to hear from the postman. A 55 year old lady who applied for widow pension eight months ago at Poovar Panchayat made 6 visits to the panchayat during the past eight months, and on the sixth visit got to know that her pension had been sanctioned. Some complained of rude behaviour by panchayat officials who told them not to enquire frequently, that they would be informed when it was sanctioned. Frequent visits to the panchayat to ascertain status of pension application was the most cited grievance. As far as the lay person is concerned, the post man is the lone source of information regarding pensions.

The lack of transparency and access to information leads to a situation wherein people feel obliged to the post man. Some of them were therefore reluctant to talk about the commission they paid the post man upon delivery of pensions. In some cases the postman was found to identify people who were eligible for pensions and prompted them to apply, and hence they were fearful that their comments about paying commission might antagonise him. This information asymmetry creates space for unequal power relations and corruption.

In Haryana, People find out about sanctioning of their pension only when they find their names in the pension list available with the Sarpanch. There is no way to keep a check on the status of their pensions. According to the accountant (DSWO, Palwal) the sanction of an application should be completed in a month but this does not happen in reality due to the lack of staff and the load of work.

In Assam, respondents from Darang district mentioned that many of their pension applications forms have been rejected but the panchayat office did not provide them with any explanation for this rejection. Some villagers were informed that their names could be included in the list, only following the deaths

of a few of the existing pensioners. Others were assured that their names would be registered in the next list but that never happened. Yet some more, found their pensions stopped after receiving it for one year. After repeated enquiries they found that there were several applicants with the same name, which results in arbitrary cancellation of some pensions.

In Gujarat, once the pension is sanctioned, beneficiaries receive a letter before the payment. The talathi also receives a copy of the sanction order. Once an application is submitted, sanctioning has to be completed within 30 days according to district officials. Although a district official in Dahod said that its takes 30 days to sanction pension (otherwise a penalty is levied), the CEM was not aware of any time limits. He said “Hum toh jald se jald karwa dete hain, aur hum toh hafte bhar me kara lete hain.” Responses in the FGDs indicated that the sanctioning of pensions and actual disbursement of payment takes upto six months from the date of application.

2.3 Other innovationsIn Rajasthan we note a positive trend; that once the pension is sanctioned, beneficiaries receive a letter before payment mentioning date of application and date of sanctioning. In West Bengal, the pension starts from the month of approval. For example, if the pension is delayed by five months from the date of approval, the pensioner will get the dues of all six months.

In terms of assisting in pension applications; in Rajasthan, Rajiv Gandhi Sewa Kendras are supposed to be facilitation centres. Officials stated that every pensioner will receive a particular Identification number, he/she can check the pension status and overall summary. Data will be available on servers, but the password will be with the concerned person who will be sitting in the Rajiv Gandhi Sewa Kendra.

In West Bengal, a physical verification of widows/disabled persons is done before sanctioning the pensions. The SEWA database stores the Name, RHS (an ID to uniquely identify the beneficiaries ), Age, Relationship of the person and a muster roll kind of a sheet is generated. From this sheet the total amount to be given is calculated and sent to the bank.

III. Disbursement and Payment

The third major aspect of pension systems is the actual delivery and payment processes. The following are our findings; while there are state variations in mode of delivery, across states we note that fixed timelines are absent and transaction costs (both in time and money) of obtaining a sanctioned pension remain high. The irregularity and absence of a fixed date and time cause great inconvenience to pensioners. As far as leakages go, while there were no reported claims of major leakages, in a trend observed across states, pension amounts are deposited collectively of several months together. Due to lack of awareness, pensioners said that they could not then be sure of the accounting for each individual month.

3.1. Amounts

The pension amount varies across states. While the central share remains Rs 200, some states have topped this with varying amounts. In Assam, the pension amount is Rs. 250, West Bengal and Gujarat Rs. 400 a month, Rajasthan and Kerala Rs. 500. Haryana, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have the highest pension amounts of Rs. 1000. The unanimous response from pension beneficiaries across states was that the pension amount was too low and proposed an amount between Rs 2000 and 3000.

3.2. Mode of Pension Delivery

In Gujarat, Kerala and Rajasthan the post office is the primary payment agency. In Andhra Pradesh, Telengana and West Bengal both banks and post offices are used. In Assam largely banks are the payment agency and in Haryana we noted the method of cash payments routed via direct payments in the panchayat accounts.In Gujarat, interviews with administrative and postal officials indicate that there is a doorstep delivery system in place for the elderly and the disabled through money orders. However the focus group discussion’s revealed that this option wasn’t available in reality and all pensioners went to the post office to collect their payments. In West Bengal too, the pensioner had to collect the pension themselves (often to the detriment of their health) from the payment agency itself and there was no option for door to door delivery.In Jalore in Rajasthan on the other hand it was found that 65% of the pensioners were dependent on money orders. In Kerala too, the post man delivers the pension at home for those unable to go to the post office.In Andhra Pradesh and Telengana we saw the system of the Community Service Provider working. Acting as liason between the payment agency and pensioners, these CSP’s are paid by the payment agency to carry out door to door payments. An innovation in these states is payment after biometric authentication. Issues were noted in this system such as connectivity signal problem of the device and difficulty registering fingerprints of ageing manual workers.What was noted in these states is that though the system was perhaps the most streamlined, with two receipts being generated from the machine at the time of payment (one retained with the CSP and the other handed over to the pensioner), people are unsure of the what the documents were.There is a policy push to banks in Gujarat and Rajasthan as reported in interviews with officials. The perceived benefits were largely put forward by administrators. The Jalor Collector said that money order is a source of major leakage and has high delivery costs. Efforts are being made to open zero-balance bank accounts which is perceived will reduce commission to post office and leakages. The high transition costs of moving from one mode to another were noted in other states as well such as Kerala. Several pensioners receiving

the Fisheries Pension which was earlier distributed at the Fisheries Office, have now begun to be distributed through the bank. This has caused considerable confusion.In Assam, banks are the mode of delivery of pensions. However inspite of government directives on zero balance accounts it is noted that banks withheld Rs 20-30 as minimum balance and the full pension amount not being handed over to them at the time of disbursal. Direct disbursements might be needed in the more remote areas but people seemed to be scared of having to pay off intermediaries if someone came to deliver money to their doorstep. At a majority of the villages studied, people emphasised on the need for payments to be made regular, monthly and transparent, whatever be the mode.In Haryana, The pension amount directly comes into the bank accounts of the Panchayats through the RTGS (Real Time Gross Statement) system. The amount is transferred scheme wise at different times. The pension is distributed by the Sarpanch who makes an announcement regarding the time, date and place of disbursement.

This payment system was preferred, as it was believed that it saves time and money spent in going to the bank/post office to collect pensions. BDPO Taoru mentioned that the system of transfers into the accounts of pension holders was discontinued due to repeated complaints. Though the system of direct cash transfer is preferred, it may also lead to suspicion in the minds of people especially in the areas where favouritism based on political affiliation is at play. For instance, a respondent in Jalalpur Hathin, Palwal district complained that the money which is actually sanctioned for the Panchayat under Pension schemes is far more than what people actually receive. Biometric pension distribution system was also introduced in Haryana, through private partnership. However, this experiment was largely unsuccessful. Thus, cash-in-hand process continues in the state.

3.3. Regularity:

In probing the regularity of pensions, we were able to pick out a clear trend across states. The term ‘delay’ is a misnomer and incorrectly applied. While it is correct that there is no fixed date for pension disbursals, the pension amounts of several months is deposited bunched together. Thus this is not technically a delay in the sense of the word. Instead, the picture that emerges is one of erratic pensions rather than delayed pensions. However within this delivery system, people are largely aware of the frequency in which pensions are to be expected whether it is once every two or six months. District officials confirmed that this is linked to fund release systems from higher level with the delay at their level being minimum.

In Gujarat and Rajasthan the pensions are supposed to be monthly, however interviews and FGDs confirmed that the pension for two months usually comes clubbed together. The reason for this is fund release from the higher administrative level takes place once in 2-3 months. For Assam and West Bengal, this is around 3-4 months. District officials claimed that this was due to the delay in the funds being transferred from the state treasury involving long

and bureaucratic procedures. Pensioners in these states confirmed that though the pension is received of several months together, they receive the entire amount. In Kerala pension payments are 3-4 times a year, i.e. every 3-4 months and are normally distributed around major festivals – Onam, Christmas and Easter and are bunched up.

The consequence of this trend is the difficulty of pensioners in keeping track of pension payments. For one, many reported being confused of the amount that was actually due to them. 85 year old Kooken from Edavaka panchayat, the lone elderly person (amongst the 13 people in the above 80 age group), who was availing of the enhanced pension due to people above 80 years of age, received a total of Rs 9900 (pension for 9 months) in two instalments in quick concession. Due to the lumpsum amount he received, he was under the impression that he had received pension for the entire year.

This also creates confusion on the process of payments. In Rajasthan people interpreted this as “their pension had stopped for four months”. This is a key administrative black hole that needs special attention It needs to be explored further, whether this is a delay for four months, whether the pension amount for four months has not been received at the panchayat level or whether the pension has genuinely been discontinued. The inconvenience caused by lack of information and options for redressal is quite high. In some cases, pensioners need to “reapply” for pensions. In other cases of delay, they reapply in any case leading to administrative confusion.

3.4. Pensioner Record of Payment

In Gujarat and Rajasthan there is no formal communication to pensioners that their pension amount has been deposited. Pay slips with pensioners indicate the monthly amount, some indicate total amount and only the date, others don’t have date of disbursement. Thus it is not a very consistent or useful document for record. However it was noted that pensioners, especially the elderly, kept these receipts very carefully as proof of payment. These preserved slips, can however play a key role in complaining against irregular payments and/or in case one has not received pension for months.

In Haryana, the pensioners sign on the APR (Actual Payee Receipt) list after receiving the pension but do not receive proof themselves. In Andhra Pradesh and Telengana, the community service provider gives a receipt to the pensioner on payment. Otherwise across states, updating of post office and bank pass books remains erratic and patchy.

3.5. Transaction CostsIn Gujarat, the first transaction cost is due to the information gap on the pension amount actually being deposited into the account. The second is the practice of 5% of the entire pension amount is given to the post office as a fee. The third is the distance to the post office which was 1-2 km away. Transport costs due to distance from payment agencies was noted across states. In West Bengal, some of the beneficiaries have to travel 3-4 kms away in order to reach the nearest

Bank branch. If the beneficiaries choose to walk to the Bank they have to waste an entire day to retrieve their pension & then return back home. Officials at bank and post offices charging an amount to process the payment was also reported in the state. In Kerala a noted practice was that of paying the post man a nominal commission for the pension delivery, considered ‘chaaya kaash’ (money for tea).

IV. Monitoring and grievance redress

In Kerala and West Bengal, officials equated monitoring with financial audits where allotments are compared with expenditures. These audits do not include the auditing of lists to check for exclusion. From interviews with officials in Gujarat it was learnt that in review meetings that are regularly held, proactive identification of beneficiaries is encouraged but there is no system for mapping fund release to actual disbursement to check whether final payment to pensioner has been made or not. In Assam, Junior Assistants had been appointed at the district level to conduct verifications. Social audits were not conducted in any of the study states.

In Gujarat, once pension applications have been submitted there is no centralised system for tracking its progress. The study team was unable to obtain any orders for regular monitoring or checks but district officials maintained that sample checks are conducted in every Taluka from time to time. For registering grievances, a State Wide Attention of Grievances by Application and Technology (SWAGAT) is in place. This system can be used to seek reasons for rejection of pension applications in addition to making verbal or oral representations to district officials. The study team however did not come across any individual who had registered a grievance. Further, while Gujarat has enacted a Right to Public Services Act under which the pension schemes are to be included, the rules to operationalize this were yet to be formulated at the time of the study.

In Haryana, there was no established procedure for registering grievances. Complaints are generally forwarded to the Block Development Panchayat Officer by the Sarpanch. In Rajasthan as well, the team did not find any evidence of an established grievance redress system. Here the BDO is responsible for recording and redressing grievances but people found the postman more accessible and would address their queries to him.

The system of grievance redress in Kerala was found to be coherent. A complaint is first registered at the Panchayat level, an appeal can be filed. The second appellate authority is the District Collector. However, there were no timelines or one system for tracking how many complaints had been received and how long they had taken to be resolved.

Recommendations

At the time of writing this report, the Ministry of Rural Development released revised programme guidelines for NSAP in October 2014. Several of the

recommendations listed in this section have been incorporated or are an extension of what is stated in the revised NSAP guidelines.

Expand coverage and universalize: Given that the number of elderly (people aged 60 and above) in the unorganized sector in the country is 9.65 crore, and that IGNOAPS covers only 2.13 crore of this, combined with incorrect BPL based targeting, it is evident that the coverage of the scheme is severely inadequate. It is necessary to expand this. The principle of universalisation with clearly defined exclusion criteria is the demonstrated alternative as in the cases of Kerala and Rajasthan which have done away with the Below Poverty Line criteria.

Institutionalise proactive identification and enrolment mechanisms: States like Telengana and Andhra Pradesh through their Rachabanda programme and Rajasthan with its Prashasan Gaon Ki Oar programme have successfully widened their coverage for pensions. Enrolment mechanisms even in their current form of camps, khula darbars, and surveys need to be held regularly on fixed dates and widely publicised. It must be incumbent of the administration to identify pensioners rather than for persons to prove themselves eligible.

Simplify application and sanctioning process: A single window system where applicants can obtain all the necessary supporting documents for their pension application as well as submit their pension application for processing is recommended. Facilitation support to complete all the required procedures for submitting the form must be provided at the relevant administrative office and the locations where camps or village level enrolment drives are being held. Further the processing times for sanctioning of pensions must be specified, proactively disclosed and have strict enforcement provisions such as fines for delays. The timelines, as specified in the guidelines must not be more than three months. Where Right to Public Service Acts are in place, pensions should be brought under its ambit. Intimating reasons for pension applications: If a pension application has been rejected on grounds of inadequate supporting documents or discrepancies in the documents (particularly with regard to age, which is commonly reported), the administration should take proactive measures to assist the applicant in furnishing necessary documents. In cases where a pension application cannot be entertained the applicant should be informed within a specified time period about the reason for rejection. Many applicant were observed to be repeatedly applying without knowing the reason for rejection.Pensioner Dashboards: Efforts should be made to make information available in a form which is useful to pensioners. They should firstly be given a record of their pensions (for example in the form of a passbook). Secondly, simple, transparent mechanisms for tracking applications should be introduced. Thirdly, all information related to allocations and expenditures should be easily accessible at all levels.

Indexing and rationalising amounts: Currently there is no rationale for the old age pension amount of Rs. 200 and 300. It is strongly recommended that it be indexed to inflation and revised annually (in the same manner as MNREGA wage rates and that of the salaries of government servants.) While the new guidelines urge states to provide an addition amount which is equal to the assistance provided by the Central Government, it does not specify a minimum. Based on the responses of people across states, an average amount of Rs. 2000 per month or half the minimum wage, whichever is higher is recommended. Regular payments: Regular disbursement of funds on a fixed date every month must be followed in all states. In case of payment delays, compensation must be paid to the pensioner. States must formulate rules to this effect. A systematic survey of the distance between the payment agency and the village/area where beneficiaries reside must be undertaken and where the distance is over 3 km, alternative modes of delivery must be put in place such as doorstep delivery. The removal of uncertainty will reduce transaction costs of accessing the pension. Focus on highly vulnerable groups: States must proactively identify particularly vulnerable groups such as the Primitive Tribal Groups, Transgender, Sex Workers and include under existing or introduce new pension schemes. The new guidelines also call for special priority to be given to vulnerable groups under the existing schemes. Single women (destitute, abandoned, divorced, separated, never married, females headed households etc.) must be included under the pension scheme to address the increasing feminisation of poverty and provide support to women who do not have access to equal opportunities for paid work outside the home and wages equal to their male counterparts.Revise eligibility criteria for disability: There is a need to simplify the process for disability pensions and in particular, doing away with percentage-based disability evaluation. States must conduct orientation of officials on disability rights.

Social audits and other transparency and accountability measures: The absence of community monitoring in any state emerges as a stark finding. As the new NSAP guidelines state, social audits must be made mandatory and states must issue detailed rules on its implementation and redressal. Wall paintings of pension beneficiary lists must be done at a ward level where possible and at the panchayat level in the least.

Annexure: Overview of NSAP

Social security pensions are presently offered in India under the National social Assistance Programme (NSAP). Introduced in 1996, the objective of the NSAP is to protect poorer citizens from the adverse effects of ‘undeserved want’ resulting from ‘unemployment, old age, disablement, breadwinner’s death, maternity and sickness’. NSAP, initially included, Pensions for Old Age and Benefits for Maternity and one time transfer to families with deceased

breadwinners - pensions for widows and the disabled were introduced in 2009. The table below has been compiled using a combination of official documents and field verification and is subject to further changes. Suggestions are invited.

State Social Security pension scheme

Date initiated

Eligibility Amount in Rs. per month

Supporting documents

Andhra Pradesh and Telengana

IGNOAPS 2006 BPL, 65 Years and above

200 BPL(White) ration card, 2 photographs, copy of voter ID/ Aadhar card – common for all schemes

IGNWPS 2006 BPL, Widow, 18 years and above

200 Death certificate of husband

IGNDPS 2006 BPL, 40% disability

500 Medical certificate from SADAREM

Weavers 2000 BPL, Weaving caste, Above 50 years

200 Caste Certificate

Toddy Tappers

2010 BPL, Toddy tapper caste, Above 50 years

200 Caste Certificate

Abhayashtam 2011 60-64 years, member of SHG, with annual contribution of Rs.365

500 Not available

Patients on Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART)

2012 HIV/AIDS patients Not available Not available

All beneficiaries of the above schemes must belong to BPL families, should be local residents and cannot avail of more than one SSPS

KeralaIGNOAPS Not

available65 Years and above, family annual income beclow Rs.100,000

500 Ration card, voter ID/Aadhar, income certificate issued by village officer

IGNDPS 2013 Destitute widowed or divorced women, family annual income less than Rs.100,000

700 Disability certificate from medical board

IGNWPS 2013 Destitute widowed or divorced women, family annual income less than Rs.100,000

700 Death certificate of husband or proof of abandonment

UMWP Not available

Unmarried widowed women above 50 years (various other), family annual

700 Death certificate of husband

income less than Rs.100,000

ALP/KAWWF 1980 60 years and above, agricultural worker for 10 years or more, destitute, member of KAWWF (various other)

500 Ration card, voter ID/Aadhar, income certificate issued by village officer

KFWFB – OA 1986 Registered Fishermen above 60 years, annual income below Rs. 5000

400 Not available

KFWFB - WP 1986 Widows of Registered Fishermen not receiving OAP from KFWFB

400 Not available

Aswasa Kiranam

2010 Full time carers of mentally or physically challenged bed-ridden patients

525 Not available

MCP Not available

Not available Not available Not available

PHP Not available

Not available Not available Not available

West Bengal IGNOAPS 2002-03 BPL, 60-79 years and over 80 years

400/1000 BPL card, Voter ID,

IGNWPS Not available

BPL, 40-79 years 600 BPL card, Voter ID, death certificate of husband

IGNDPS Not available

BPL, 40% disability

600 BPL card, Voter ID, disability certificate from Government hospital

State scheme – Old Age Pension for Tribals

2004 BPL, Schedule Tribe, above 60 years

1000 BPL card, savings bank account, age and tribe-certificate – verified by panchayat

Old Age Pension Scheme – Govt. Of West Bengal

2009-10 BPL, men – 65 years, women – 60 years, non beneficiares of IGNOAPS

700 Not available

Haryana Old Age Samman allowance scheme

2005 60 years or above, domicile-Haryana,family annual income not more than Rs.50,000

1000 Age proof,Addressproof, Twophotographs

Widows and Destitute Women Pension Scheme

1991 Widowed women above 18 years/women under 21 years deprived of parental support, destitute, domicile-Haryana, income

1000 Age proof,Addressproof, Twophotographs, Death certificateof the husband

from all sources below Rs.30,000 per annum

Disability Pension

1991 Minimum 70% disability, 50% IQ in case of mental disability

1000

LADLI social security allowance scheme

2005 All parents, domicile-Haryana, on birth of their second girl child

2500 per annum per girl child for 5 years

Age proof,Addressproof, Twophotographs,birthcertificatesof both girlchildren

Rajasthan IGNOAPS Not available

BPL, elderly, - 60-74 years / 75 years and above

500/750 BPL card, Voter ID/Aadhar and Age proof certificate, 4 passport size photographs

IGNWPS Not available

BPL, widowed women – 40-74 / 75-79 Years

500/750 All the above and husband’s death certificate

IGNDPS Not available

BPL, 80% disability, 18-74 years/75-79 years

500/750 Disability certificate

SOAP Not available

BPL, elderly women – 55-75 years, men – 58-75 years

500/750 Not available

SWPS Not available

Widows or ‘Paritaktya’ , with no sons or grandsons above 25 years – 18-65/65-75 years

500/750 Not available

SDPS Not available

40% disability, no family support, annual income < 48000 in rural and < 60000 in urban areas – 0-8 years/18-75 Y/above 75 Y

250/500/750 Not available

Gujarat IGNOAPS Not available

BPL (Score-16), 60 years and above

400 BPL card, Voter ID, Age certificate from PHC, ration card, photocopy of bank/post office account proof

IGNWPS Not available

BPL (Score 16), no son, permanent resident of Gujarat for 10 years, 18-40 years

Death certificate of husband by Taluka Development Officer, ration card, photocopy of bank/post office account proof, ID proof

IGNDPS Not available

BPL (Score 16), 80% disability, 45 years

Disability certificate, 2 passport size photographs, age certificate, income certificate

Niradhar Vidhwa Mahilao na Panahvasvat mate Arthik Sahay Yojana

Not available

Widowsin the age group of of 18-40, with unmarried daughter, up to the age till the son becomes 21

Rs. 750/ + Rs. 100/- per child, up to two children (rest do not get )

Self-attested copy of ration card,photocopy of bank or post office account,photocopy of voter ID and Aadhar card,

(Financial support for Rehabilitation of Destitute and Widow women scheme)

yrs death certificate of husband,copy of ration card,annual income certificate issued by Mamlatdar or Taluka Development Officer after asset verification and affidavit by talati ,2 passport size photographs,Widows with a son above the age of 21 are not eligible. If the son is adult but unable to take care due to physical or mental disability, under trial or deceased.Authorisation by village Sarpanch once a year to declare that the applicant is single and has not remarried.

Assam IGNOAPS Not available

BPL, 65-79 Years/above 79 Years

250/550 BPL card, Voter ID, Age proof certificate, domicile certificate, inome certificate, photographs

IGNWPS Not available

BPL, 40-79 Years Age proof, address proof, Death certificate

IGNDPS Not available

BPL, 18-79 Years, 80% disability

Age proof, address prrof,Disability certificate