Although almost all of Odisha’s poor senior citizens received the four-month advance old-age pension promised by the State as COVID-19 relief, only half of them got free foodgrains, according to a survey conducted by the ISSRF, a research group formed by retired officials from the statistical and economic services.
Wait till August
About 40% spent the cash on immediate food and grocery expenses, which could leave them bereft until pension payments begin again in August.
Odisha supplements the Centre’s pension payments to give ₹500-700 per month to all poor people above 60 years. In late March, it said it would give the advance pension to all beneficiaries as a lump-sum amount to alleviate the hardship imposed by the lockdown. At the same time, the Centre also announced an ex gratia of ₹1,000 for each pensioner and also promised extra free foodgrains for all ration cardholders.
A telephonic survey of 1,701 beneficiaries in 30 districts found that 95% of them had received the advance pension by the first week of May. However, only 63% received the ₹1,000 from the Centre, while only 51% got the promised foodgrains.
About 40% of pensioners spent the entire advance pension immediately, most on food, groceries and medicine. Three of the four pensioners spent at least 60% of the advance. As this was a four month advance, they will not receive their next pension payment till August, which could leave them in dire straits if the lump-sum is exhausted. “It may be more appropriate to extend such assistance more in kind and less in terms of cash during crisis,” said ISSRF’s statement, adding that the monthly payment timeline should not have been changed.
The survey also found that more than 40% of these senior citizens continued to move outside their homes in the first half of May, though they are particularly vulnerable to infection. About 20% of respondents have diabetes while another 14% have chronic respiratory illnesses, which put them at additional risk.