2.8 lakh of its pensioners above 80 years, Railways want to run a chec - See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/2-8-lakh-of-its-pensioners-above-80-yrs-railways-want-to-run-a-check

2.8 lakh of its pensioners above 80 years, Railways want to run a check

The inspectors, all railway employees, have been asked to visit the houses of all pensioners in this age bracket, obtain their signatures and, if possible, that of their neighbours as witnesses to certify that the beneficiary is alive.

Written by Avishek G Dastidar | New Delhi | Updated: February 22, 2016 8:03 am

According to government figures, the next in line in this pension segment is the defence ministry, which is far behind with 42,000 pensioners.

Facing a cash squeeze and a bulging pension bill, the Railways have launched a first-of-its-kind exercise to physically verify whether all its retired employees, aged between 80 and 100 years, are still alive.

Starting this month, hundreds of “Welfare Inspectors” have been fanning out to track down each of the 2.86 lakh former employees in this age group, who form 20 per cent of the Railways’ total pensioner population of 13,75,483 and draw a combined pension of at least Rs 8,000 crore.

The inspectors, all railway employees, have been asked to visit the houses of all pensioners in this age bracket, obtain their signatures and, if possible, that of their neighbours as witnesses to certify that the beneficiary is alive.

“Legally, every pensioner is supposed to provide physical proof of life to banks every year to continue drawing pension.

The system works fine. But looking at the huge numbers and considering the age group in question, we just want to rule out the possibility of any irregularity there,” a senior Railway Board official told The Indian Express.

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