On Day 1 of Praja Palana, people faced obstacles such as shortage of forms and faulty documents while applying for the promised benefits.
Published Dec 28, 2023 | 9:35 PM ⚊ Updated Dec 29, 2023 | 12:51 PM
One of the government center closed during lunch hours (Deepika Pasham/ South First)
There were challenges galore on Thursday, 28 December, the first day of Praja Palana — the application process for the six guarantees announced by Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy-led Congress government.
South First toured the government centres where applications were being collected to understand the feedback and grievances of the residents of the state.
Immediately after the distribution of forms commenced on Thursday morning, several issues were pointed out by the people who collected them.
The most notable concern was the shortage of application forms resulting in a considerable number of eligible beneficiaries being inadvertently left out of the application process.
A significant portion of the population lacked ration cards, a crucial requirement for the application. Compounding the problem, photocopies of the forms were being sold at premium prices in various shops.
Adding to the complications, there was a lack of awareness among the applicants regarding the necessary documents for submission.
Many people were unaware that documents such as gas agency bills needed to be included with their applications.
Additionally, it was discovered that a substantial number of economically disadvantaged women, falling below the poverty line, did not possess bank accounts, further hindering their ability to smoothly complete the application process.
In a queue at Anand Bhag in the Medchal-Malkajgiri district, an uneducated woman kept asking the volunteer at the centre if she could help tick the box for senior citizens for her husband.
However, the supporting document — the Aadhaar card — indicated an age below 60 and since the criteria for the pension under the Cheyutha scheme required individuals to be above 60 years old, she was unable to do so.
The woman, S Rekha, told South First: “I got the form to apply for the six guarantees, but how do we provide proof of my husband being sixty years or older? His Aadhaar card was made with whatever year we remembered. Now, if there should be a change in age, I should bring a document such as a birth certificate, which is a tough task for us.”
She added: “In other schemes, they are also asking for the gas agency’s name and connection number. We are poor families, and we don’t use gas cylinders for cooking. Where should we get the details to avail of the scheme?”
Incidentally, since the centre had a shortage of application forms, some shops had a hugely profitable day by selling photocopies of the application form for above ₹50.
One beneficiary who did not get the application form found out that they were being sold at shops in the next lane after inquiring with someone.
On the way to collect the form, she told South First, “According to the officers in our ward office in Maredpally, the application forms ran out in the morning itself. Now I need to pay ₹50 to get the form.”
When South First inquired in the shops, they said: “These are the photocopies, and we are not government offices or centres to give them for free.”
They added: “It costs ₹3-4 for the photocopy of a single page and it will be charged according to the number of pages. If they don’t have the original form, we are charging an extra ₹10 alongside the photocopying charges.”
One of the volunteers in Anand Bagh, D Vasanthi, told South First, “The women who are applying for Mahalakshmi and Cheyutha have no bank accounts, so we are informing them it is one to two hours’ work in banks to open a bank account, and it is mandatory to attach the copy of the passbook’s front page in the application form.”
She added: “For some families, the major problem is with ration cards. The serial number of the card is asked in the details on the first page of the forms, and the families who don’t have them are filling up other details and submitting it. We cannot assure if such beneficiaries will be found eligible.”
South First also observed large queues in front of the offices of gas agencies’ offices, where women were asking about the details of the cooking gas they receive every month.
On-ground volunteers were also not creating awareness of how beneficiaries could apply for other schemes in the application form.
Amidst the news of the subsequent rush of people to Meeseva Centres with their income certificates, the newly appointed Tahasildar Srinivastava of Asifnagar Mandal addressed the concerns in a video statement.
He reassured the public, “As a government official, I am here to clarify that there is no need for individuals to feel stressed while applying for an Income Certificate to obtain ration cards.”
He added: “There is no specific procedure that requires documents based on the income certificate, and nobody should waste their time standing in queues for the application of an income certificate.”
Daily-wage labourer farmers, who primarily engage in agricultural work, found themselves in a perplexing situation regarding the Rythu Bharosa scheme.
This initiative offers a benefit of ₹15,000 per acre per year to farmers, but the application form requires details about the land where the labourers work.
This poses a challenge as landlords may be hesitant to share such information with their labourers.
Typically, these labourers receive payment at the end of each day for the work done, making it difficult for them to provide the required details in the application form.
P Krishniah, a resident of Maheshwaram, told South First: “My family received a ration card when my children were young. Now, one of my sons is married, and I want to know how to include him in the existing old ration card.”
He added: “Concerning the Rythu Bharosa scheme, daily-wage labourers are facing a dilemma. The application form requires details about the land and the details of their bank passbook, but obtaining these details poses a challenge. We are seeking clarification so that we can submit the application form by 6 January.”
