KOCHI: Despite an order by the government sanctioning Rs 400 as pension to the physically challenged, the authorities are yet to respond positively to the order. The pension scheme was even included in the Chief Minister’s 100-Day Action Plan.Though the authorities had promised that the arrears will be paid to the beneficiaries before Onam, it is learnt that no substantial steps have been taken in this regard. When asked, the local bodies responsible for distributing the pension, passed the buck on saying that they did not receive any orders from the government.“We haven’t received any such orders from the government yet,” said B Bhadra, Deputy Mayor, Kochi Corporation. Even Maradu municipality chairman T K Devarajan had the same reason to offer. “We would have given the amount if we had received any orders on it,” he said.Differently-Abled Persons Welfare Federation (DAWF) president (district), V P Sasidharan refuted this statement and said that they staged a dharna at the Chellanam panchayat as they did not receive the pension amount of `400. Later. the Chellanam panchayat officials agreed to pay back the arrears during Christmas season.Chellanam panchayat member O S Sebastian also confirmed this. “As we could not give the full amount as per the government order, the panchayat has decided to give it in December,” he said. The pension amount was hiked from `300 to 400 during the previous LDF government. Apart from the offered hike, the then-government and the current government did not take any measures to distribute the amount.Already, the DAWF state committee has approached Chief Minister Oommen Chandy in this regard. Chandy had promised them the arrears before Onam as it was included in his 100-Day Action Plan. “We have not received any benefits in this regard till date,” said V K Sasidharan, treasurer, DAWF. The DAWF also approached the authorities of the Social Welfare Department. “But they were also of little help as we were told that they did not receive any orders from the higher authorities,” Sasidharan said.“This is their only means of livelihood and they are deprived of it. Even with this meagre amount they are literally struggling to make both ends meet,” said Sasidharan. He said the Differently -Abled Persons Welfare Federation staged dharnas at the secretariat as well as at 14 collectorates in the state on Friday demanding to raise the pension amount from Rs 400 to Rs 1,000.
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