MARGAO
Has the government honoured its promise to make the pension scheme for retired seafarers and widows permanent as per Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s assurance on the floor of House in the last session?
Leave alone a permanent pension scheme becoming a reality, beleaguered seafarers and widows have gone without pension for the last two months.
In fact, the beneficiaries have found to their utter shock and disbelief that the government has not released pension for the months of September and October.
That’s not all. The pension scheme titled Goa Welfare/Pension Scheme for Seafarers is due to expire in the month of November, leaving the seafarers and widows to keep their fingers crossed over the fate of the scheme.
Sources at the office of NRI Commissioner say the office had forwarded separate files to the Home Department, one seeking nod to credit funds amounting to Rs 1.5 crore to disburse the pension for the months of September and October. The second file pertains to the proposal to make the pension scheme permanent, through the department of Social Welfare by consolidating the pension amounts of the beneficiaries.
The buck, however, seemed to have stopped at the door steps of the Home Department, with the Office of NRI Commissioner not receiving the nod for the release of pension for the two months of September and October and has not received any communication on the fate of the proposal to make the pension scheme permanent.
When The Goan contacted the Director, NRI Office, Anthony D’Souza to shed light on the delay in disbursing the pension for the retired seafarers and widows for the month of September and October, he replied saying the file had gone to the Home Department for approval around two months ago.
Official sources informed that the government had allocated around Rs three crore to fund the pension scheme, out of which permission was granted by the government to utilize Rs 1.5 crore. As the funds got exhausted, the NRI office had sent the file for sanction to utilize the balance amount of Rs 1.5 crore over two months ago. Given that the file has not returned with the official nod to utilize the money, the NRI office could not disburse the pension for the last two months.
“Funds are not an issue for the moment to finance the pension scheme. What is required is the timely permissions to utilize the sanctioned funds so that amount gets credited in the accounts of the pensioners”, remarked an official.
Incidentally, hopes were raised that the pension scheme for seafarers may become permanent after Home Secretary Sanjith Rodrigues had a meeting with representatives of the seafarers to find ways and means how to go about the work.
What has raised fears amongst the retired seafarers and widows is that the scheme, unveiled by former Chief Minister late Manohar Parrikar, was abruptly ended around October 2019. Since then, for more than a year and half, the pension scheme was confined to the official books, before it was revived in June 2021 for a limited period of six months.
After the scheme lapsed in November 2021, the government renewed the scheme around January for a year. The scheme is now set to end in November 2022 unless the government extends the same or makes it permanent as per Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s assurance given on the floor of the House during discussions on the resolution tabled by Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas demanding a permanent scheme for the seafarers.
