Secretary Social Welfare, Dr Farooq AhmadLone today chaired a review meeting of directorate of social welfare to review the progress made under various national level social assistance, marriage assistance and scholarship schemes.Lone stressed on the need to utilize all the funds available under various schemes and urged officers that money should reach to the eligible candidates without any hassle or delay. He directed all the officers to specially focus on downtrodden and poor people to ensure they get the benefits assured under the schemes.“Department should organize awareness camps so that more people get information about the schemes and thus apply to get the benefits,” Lone directed the officials. He said that the department should ensure that students applying for various scholarships should be provided every assistance and provided help through single window system.Lone said that the Department has to focus on weaker and vulnerable sections of the society especially women in distress, physically challenged and other backward classes.The social welfare department gave a detailed presentation regarding status of various schemes which include National Social Assistance Program, Integrated Social Security Scheme, Shelter Homes, State Marriage Assistance Scheme and Scholarship Scheme.
The meeting was informed that 72265 beneficiaries were sanctioned under Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme and 4947 beneficiaries were sanctioned under Indira Gandhi Widow Pension Scheme while as 1444 beneficiaries were sanctioned under Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme.According to Social Welfare Department under Integrated Social Security Scheme 2,42,668 beneficiaries have been sanctioned who get a monthly pension of Rs 1000.The total number of beneficiaries under State Marriage Assistance Scheme as on 01 October, 2018 is 1,83,992.The Department has also received 7692 applications for merit cum means scholarship, 54,635 applications for post-matric minority scholarship and 132,769 applications for pre-matric minority scholarships for the year 2018-19.The meeting was attended by senior officials from Social Welfare Department.