Patna: Chief minister Samrat Choudhary on Wednesday directed all district magistrates (DMs) to identify an estimated 18 to 20 lakh people in Bihar, who remain outside social security pension schemes, because their KYC formalities are incomplete or their Aadhaar numbers are not linked to bank accounts.Addressing a gathering after inaugurating the “Prakhand Sahyog-cum-Jan-Kalyan Shivir” at Nadiyawan village in Phulwarisharif block of Patna district, Choudhary asked the DMs to complete the required formalities and ensure that eligible beneficiaries receive pensions under the Social Security Pension Scheme.“There are 1.12 crore families in Bihar, of which pension can be provided to eligible persons of only 94 lakh families because there are 18 to 20 lakh such people whose KYC could not be completed or whose Aadhaar numbers are not linked to their bank accounts. All DMs should identify such persons deprived of the social security pension,” he said.The state govt raised the pension amount for elderly people, persons with disabilities and widows from Rs 400 to Rs1,100 per month under the Social Security Pension Schemes, ahead of the 2025 assembly elections.Choudhary said the Prakhand Sahyog-cum-Jan-Kalyan Shivir was organised across all 534 blocks of Bihar on Wednesday. He urged all eligible people to get Ayushman cards made at the camps. He said the initiative was both a support camp and a public welfare programme, aimed at taking information about Union and state govt schemes to every person and making benefits easily available to eligible beneficiaries.He said Bihar had already created 48 lakh “Lakhpati Didis” and the govt intended to make one crore Jeevika Didis self-reliant as Lakhpati Didis within the next two years. Referring to the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana, he said women who had not yet received assistance under the scheme would get the amount transferred to their bank accounts within a month.The CM also announced that Natthupur road would be connected to the AIIMS roundabout to improve road connectivity for nearby villages. He said Nadiyawan Utkramit Madhya Vidyalaya would be upgraded into a Plus Two higher secondary school.HHe said the govt had decided to establish model schools named Saraswati Vidya Niketan in all 534 blocks of Bihar to provide quality education. Children of MPs, ministers, officials and poor families would study together in these schools.
