Three years on, Telangana senior citizens still await Congress’ Rs 4,000 pension promise

Three years after Congress promised to raise Telangana senior citizens' pensions from Rs 2,016 to Rs 4,000, the enhancement remains unimplemented. Fresh enrolment under the Cheyutha scheme remains unavailable for senior citizens.

Hyderabad: As International Senior Citizens Day was observed on October 1, many senior citizens in Telangana were left disappointed yet again, with the Congress government yet to fulfil its poll promise of increasing their monthly pension to Rs 4,000.

During the 2023 Assembly elections, the Congress had promised to increase the monthly pension for senior citizens from Rs 2,016 to Rs 4,000. The promise was made irrespective of whether their children were employed.

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However, three years after the promise was made, the enhanced pension has not been implemented, leaving senior citizens waiting for the promised increase.

The BRS government had reduced the eligibility age for old-age pensions from 65 years in 2014 to 57 years in 2022. It had also increased the monthly pension from Rs 1,000 in 2014 to Rs 2,016 in 2022.

Meanwhile, the State government invited applications from eligible people for pensions under the Cheyutha scheme. In the past, pensions were extended under 11 different categories, including senior citizens, single women and others.

However, four categories, including senior citizens and beedi workers, were again excluded from the Cheyutha pension scheme, preventing fresh enrolment of beneficiaries.

Officials are also reportedly unclear about why applications from senior citizens are not being accepted, even as new enrolment of beneficiaries was being facilitated under the scheme.

Compounding the problems faced by beneficiaries, complaints have emerged that many senior citizens have been left out of the pensioners’ list for various reasons.

Before 2023, nearly 16.44 lakh senior citizens were receiving the Rs 2,016 monthly pension. The number has now fallen to 14.65 lakh.

Officials attributed the decline to deaths, beneficiaries being untraceable and people shifting to other States. In a few cases, officials said beneficiaries were not interested in receiving the pension.

Reasons for exclusion from the pensioners’ list as on July 30, 2026:

• Death: 76,372
• Not traced: 45,134
• Out of State: 6,064
• Not interested: 1,248