Hyderabad: The ruling party MLAs are not happy with the online payment system of pensions and other financial benefits by the government as this has reduced the importance of political leaders, particularly the MLAs.
In the earlier tenure of N. Chandrababu Naidu as the AP CM, pensions were distributed during Janmabhoomi programmes once in three months by the ruling party MLAs.
In that system, the beneficiaries would depend on the local MLAs to get their financial benefits and the MLAs too would get publicity out of it. They would also know who received the benefits and who didn’t.
In the new system, the government pays the pensions directly in the bank accounts of the beneficiaries, leaving the MLAs out of the loop.
Thus those who are getting the pensions do not need to approach the MLAs, but those who are not, are pressurising them.
The MLAs no longer have any role in selecting the beneficiaries. They only forward the applications received by them to the government.
While chatting with the media in the Assembly, Telugu Desam senior MLA Gorantla Buchhaiah Chowdary recently said in the online payment system, the MLAs are not getting importance like in the past.
He said those who are getting their benefits are no longer coming to the MLA, while those who are not getting the pensions are approaching them and pressuring that they recommend to the government to include their name in the beneficiaries’ list.
