The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh received a cheque for the Nepal earthquake victims from a delegation of “Bharat Pensioners’ Samaj” led by its Secretary General, Shri S.C. Maheshwari, here today as a contribution from their pension savings. Appreciating the gesture, Dr. Jitendra Singh said, even though relief, both in cash and kind, is arriving in huge measure from different quarters, but the contribution made by our elder superannuated citizens from their pension, carries a special and also symbolic significance because on the one hand, it reflects their commitment and concern for human causes and on the other hand, the contribution made by them is a ‘Vardaan’ or blessing for all of us who are engaged in offering assistance to a neighbouring country in distress.
Dr. Jitendra Singh said, as Minister in charge of Personnel & Training as well as Pensions, it gives him immense satisfaction to declare that the present government recently came out with a ‘Pension Portal’ based on Aadhaar Card biometrics which would eliminate the requirement for an elderly citizen to furnish a certificate stating that he is alive. “I personally always felt guilty that in a democratic society like ours, an elder citizen was required to prove that he is still alive and therefore, the introduction of the new portal is in fact also a personal vindication for him”, he added.
The Secretary General of Bharat Pensioners’ Samaj, Shri S.C. Maheshwari said that as senior citizens, they have been witness to the evolution of the history of Indian subcontinent and therefore for them, Nepal is not merely a neighbouring country but in fact a country which lives in our hearts and whose people are like their brothers and siblings. Shri Maheshwari appreciated Dr. Jitendra Singh’s positive and accessible approach which has generated lot of enthusiasm and encouragement among thousands of retired officials across the country who earlier had certain grievances with the administration.