Bhubaneswar: While Odisha government has clarified that beneficiaries of Subhadra Yojana can apply for inclusion in social security scheme after attaining the age of 60 years, they are unlikely to receive Old Age Pension any time soon due to pendency of applications.

In an official communication, Additional Secretary, Department of Social Security and Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (SSEPD), Deepak Routrai said that individuals, who had earlier availed benefits under Subhadra Scheme, can apply for pensions under Madhu Babu Pension Yojana (MBPY) or National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) after crossing the age of 60 years. “However, the sanction of pension will depend strictly on meeting the eligibility criteria and the availability of vacancies,” he said, adding that the district social security officers will extend all necessary support in applying for the OAP.

Women aged between 21 and 60 years who belong to economically weaker sections are eligible for the flagship Subhadra Yojana, effective for five years. Those over 60 are automatically excluded from the scheme.

A total of 93,792 women over 60 have been removed after receiving two Rs 5,000 instalments in the first year of the scheme and many of them are likely to be eligible for pension. However, the waiting time could prolong with over six lakh applications for the social security benefits still pending. The waitlist is huge despite the target being revised four times, the TNIE reported.

The state government sets the target to sanction pensions every year and eligible people can be added only if there are vacancies following deaths of existing beneficiaries, it added.