MP Manish Tewari Demands Rs. 3,000 per Month Old-Age Pension in Chandigarh

MP Manish Tewari Demands Rs. 3,000 per Month Old-Age Pension in Chandigarh

Raises issue in Lok Sabha over lower pension compared to Punjab and Haryana

Chandigarh 16 December ( Ranjeet Singh Dhaliwal ) : Member of Parliament from Chandigarh and former Union Minister Manish Tewari raised the issue of the very low old-age pension being provided in the Union Territory of Chandigarh during proceedings in the Lok Sabha. He pointed out that elderly citizens in Chandigarh receive significantly lower pension amounts compared to neighbouring states Punjab and Haryana.

MP Tewari stated that in response to a question raised by him, the Central Government informed the House that old-age pension in Chandigarh is only Rs.1,000 per month. He highlighted that, in comparison, Punjab provides Rs. 1,500–Rs. 2,000 per month, while Haryana provides Rs. 3,000 per month as old-age pension.

He further noted that the pension amount in Chandigarh has not been revised since 2016, causing severe hardship to senior citizens amid rising inflation. Tewari strongly demanded that the old-age pension in Chandigarh be increased to Rs. 3,000 per month. Expressing concern, he said that both the Central Government and the Chandigarh Administration are passing the responsibility onto each other instead of addressing the genuine concerns of elderly citizens.

In reply to MP Tewari’s question, Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, B. L. Verma, stated that the Central Government provides Rs. 200 per month for persons aged 60–79 years and Rs. 500 per month for those above 80 years under the old-age pension scheme, while the remaining amount is to be contributed by the respective state or UT administration. During the response, the matter was also stated to fall under the purview of the Ministry of Rural Development.