The revelation that over 13,000 fake beneficiaries under the Dayanand Social Security Scheme (DSSS) were detected, with Rs 50 crore recovered, may show success in clamping down on illegalities and frauds, but it also exposes glaring flaws in the system’s integrity and implementation. While the government’s efforts to weed out ineligible recipients are commendable, the scale of fake beneficiaries also exposes systemic deficiencies that have been exploited.
At the heart of the problem lies the registration process itself which appears to rely heavily on self-declarations by individuals, with minimal scrutiny or verification. Such informal procedures open the floodgates to manipulation. Also, in many cases, families have not reported the deaths of beneficiaries allowing payouts to continue for years causing loss to the public exchequer. As much as there is a need to have integrated systems in place, there is also a requirement to fix responsibility. How does one explain government employees getting enrolled into the system?
The issue extends beyond mere procedural loopholes and raises questions about the integrity of the data maintained by the department. Social schemes of such scale should have an integrated digital system that updates beneficiary status in real-time, especially upon death or migration. Otherwise, the department will have to do periodic manual checks to update the status of beneficiaries. There have to be automated safeguards such as linking death certificates directly with the beneficiary database.
On the flip side, there is another issue that has been conveniently side-stepped, one that is as crucial as tracking fake beneficiaries. Several beneficiaries who are alive, have been declared "dead" and their doles stopped. They are left with a tedious process of producing a "Life Certificate" and some documentation for the dole to continue.
The process of declaring a person dead without proper verification is shocking. Many beneficiaries have been marked as deceased based solely on informal reports from acquaintances, neighbours, or even casual word-of-mouth, rather than official death certificates or authenticated documentation. This sloppy verification process results in genuine beneficiaries being deprived of their rightful benefits, and ineligible ones continuing to draw funds.
Moreover, senior citizens are put through untold misery to restore the benefits after being wrongly flagged as deceased. To re-activate their scheme benefits, individuals are required to produce a Life Certificate from designated officials, besides complying with other documentation. Such formalities appear monumental for senior citizens, especially those with mobility issues. And they have to undergo this ordeal for no fault of their own. For vulnerable citizens, such as the elderly, disabled, or those living in remote areas, this bureaucratic labyrinth is not only tedious but also contradicts the very notion of “doorstep” services that the government has been showcasing. The frustration of waiting months for benefits not only causes financial hardship but also erodes trust in government schemes designed to support the most vulnerable.
The social schemes are genuinely well-intended, but have been misused by individuals because of the gaps in the system. The government must overhaul its processes by implementing robust, technology-driven safeguards, integrating biometric verification, authenticating death certificates through official channels, and simplifying re-verification procedures for genuine beneficiaries. Lastly, there have to be stringent penalties including jail terms for those committing fraud with public money. The scheme must serve only those for whom it is intended.
