Calling upon people to avail maximum benefit from different social welfare schemes and programmes, Deputy Chief Minister Mr. Tara Chand said that exemplary benefits are being extended to various sections of the society especially to marginalized and weaker sections and real aim of these schemes can only be met if more and more people become aware about such benefits.He said the government is leaving no stone unturned to ameliorate the lot of the marginalized and all functionaries of the department as well as local panchayat members must ensure that the benefit reaches out to most deserving beneficiaries.
“Over all development of society in real terms can only happen when needs of under privileged, under developed, orphans, destitute and widows are addressed and these sections get their due share of benefits”, he added.Mr. Tara Chand was addressing a large gathering on the occasion of launching a mega awareness camp about various social welfare schemes at Khour today. Sarpanches, Panches and scores of people of the area attended the camp.
Underlining different schemes of the social welfare department, Mr. Tara Chand said that aged and infirm people are getting pension under Integrated Social Security Scheme and centrally sponsored Indira Gandhi National Pension Scheme, Integrated Child Development Scheme is catering to nutrition needs of the children and pre-matric and post-matric scholarships are being provided.
Physically handicapped pension, widow pension, rehabilitation council for violence victims and hostels for students of SC,ST and Gujjar Bakarwal communities are among the initiatives taken by the department to address the social needs of the under privileged sections of the society, he added.He directed concerned officers of the department to identify the gaps in extending benefits under different programmes launched by the department and address the same on priority so that benefits reach to the concerned at the earliest, adding that officers should be diligent in recognizing cases under different pension, scholarship and other welfare schemes so that time bound settlement of the cases gets ensured.
“Rural and backward people of the area have little access to the benefits so the department is duty bound to reach out to them and awareness camps like this can go a long way in serving the purpose of reaching out to the people,” he said.
Sub-pisional Magistrate, Akhnoor Mr. N.S.Jamwal, Programme Officer, ICDS, Jammu Mr. Veer Ji Hangloo, District Social Welfare Officer Mr. Kulraj and other officers of the department participated in the camp. Mr. Hangloo spoke on various schemes of the department.