Andhra Pradesh Leading Nation in Pension Spending: Somireddy
Annual expenditure, he said, has increased from ₹16,800 crore to ₹32,500 crore.
Nellore: Sarvepalli MLA Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy on Tuesday said in the Legislative Assembly that Andhra Pradesh is setting national benchmarks through the NTR Bharosa pension scheme, with 12.88 per cent of the state’s population receiving pensions.
He said the coalition government is spending about ₹2,750 crore per month on pensions, compared to ₹1,400 crore under the previous YSR Congress regime. Annual expenditure, he said, has increased from ₹16,800 crore to ₹32,500 crore.
Over a five-year period, the present government is projected to spend ₹1.68 lakh crore on pensions — ₹82,000 crore more than the ₹84,000 crore spent by the previous government, he added.
Somireddy stated that Andhra Pradesh’s monthly pension outlay is nearly equal to the combined pension spending of seven major states, including Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Telangana. He noted that the coalition government increased the pension amount from Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000 in a single step and implemented it from the date of promise, crediting arrears for three months.
Recalling the history of the scheme, he said the late N. T. Rama Rao introduced pensions at ₹30, and N. Chandrababu Naidu later enhanced it substantially during his earlier tenure.
He added that bed-ridden beneficiaries are being provided ₹15,000 per month and urged the government to ensure that only eligible persons receive pensions, while clearing pending applications of deserving beneficiaries.
Assembly Speaker Chintakayala Ayyanna Patrudu called for strict action against ineligible pension beneficiaries.
