Struggling Elderly Woman, Age 70, Battles to Reinstate Pension After Being Mistakenly Declared Deceased in Lucknow
In the heart of Lucknow, a city known for its rich history and vibrant culture, a 70-year-old woman named Ram Dulari stood before government officials on Monday, pleading for her pension to be reinstated after it was stopped due to a declaration of her death. Her ordeal, which has lasted over a year, has cast a shadow on her life, erasing her in files and registers, yet she remains alive in flesh and blood.
Ram Dulari's story is a stark reminder of the struggles faced by everyday citizens, particularly the elderly, poor, and women, in fighting for their rights and entitlements. The Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), during a grievance hearing, directed the Social Welfare Department to immediately look into Ram Dulari's case and restore her pension.
Monday's grievance hearings in Lucknow revealed other stories of neglect. At Sadar tehsil, District Magistrate Vishakh G received 17 complaints, of which eight were resolved on the spot.
The incident highlights the suffering of the poorest citizens due to clerical errors and indifference. In many cases, elderly pension recipients in India are wrongly declared dead, leading to significant numbers of pension payments being canceled erroneously due to system or data errors.
For instance, in Rajasthan alone during 2023-2024, about 1.3 million pensioners had their payments canceled citing death or migration. However, many of these individuals were incorrectly declared dead or reported as having migrated, despite being alive and often too frail to move.
These wrongful declarations often arise from automated digital processes used by government systems, which lack sufficient transparency and local-level error rectification. In Rajasthan, 95% of death declarations were automated decisions based on mismatched data such as errors in gender, name spellings, or residence status. Pensioners or their families frequently face difficulties in correcting such errors, as they must visit state capitals for data rectification, which is burdensome for elderly rural residents.
To address these issues, pension advocacy groups have pushed for greater transparency and better access to corrections in pension databases. They demand that government apps publicly display cancellation reasons to enable affected pensioners to challenge or rectify errors. Some states, like Uttar Pradesh, have introduced Aadhaar-linked direct digital transfers to improve transparency, timeliness, and reduce intermediaries, which may help reduce such errors.
Ram Dulari's appeal, an old woman pleading for recognition of her existence, carries a raw pain that stands out among the cases presented. The SDM also ordered an inquiry into how and why Ram Dulari's name was struck off the list of beneficiaries, and threatened action against anyone found guilty.
Other complaints at the grievance hearings were related to the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. In Hanumantpur, Kamla Devi complained that she has not been paid for the labor she contributed to her house built under the scheme three years ago. Elsewhere, villagers demanded land to be reserved for cremation, emphasizing an unmet basic need.
A small pension, intended to provide dignity in old age, can become a battleground for survival. As we strive to build a fair and just society, it is crucial that we address these systemic issues and ensure that our most vulnerable citizens are not forgotten or erased by bureaucratic errors.
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