Aadhaar shock to 1.5 lakh pensioners, yet to get 2 months' pension

Close to 1.5 lakh beneficiaries have not received their pensions for 2 months. They had been given information about the mandate six months ago, but they did not comply. Linking the Aadhaar card was mandatory because the government wanted to ensure that the PF was received by genuine beneficiaries.

In the wake of latest news on Aadhaar linking with various government accounts, PF pensioners who have not linked their Aadhaar to their pension accounts are facing a terrible time. Close to 1.5 lakh pensioners in Karnataka are yet to receive their pensions for 2 months because they have not linked their accounts with the Aadhaar document. 

Despite having given them the information about the mandate six months ago, these pensioners did not respond in time to the government's announcement. Inside sources, however, said that this was a Central policy decision, other states too would have such cases. PF officials said that the measure was taken to ensure that the money reached genuine beneficiaries. He further explained, "Earlier, a survivor certificate was given at banks, and in some cases, those certificates were suspicious. Hence, Aadhaar was made mandatory. In fact, pensioners, after providing biometrics at the PF office, need not provide survivor certificates every year, which is currently the norm. From next year, they can go to their banks and give their thumb impression instead of the survivor certificate.”

If we go by a report by the Economic Times in 2016, pensioners had started getting calls on their phones regarding the linking since last year itself. Even the banks where they held accounts appealed them through posts. The district collectors were also looped in for the exercise by the ministry of personnel.