M A I N   N E W S

‘Aam aadmi’ plank hijacked, Cong rolls direct-cash-transfer dice
Anita Katyal/TNS

game-changer Scheme pitched as UPA-II’s flagship programme As many as 29 out of 42 welfare schemes run by government to be covered Scholarships, old age pension to be disbursed under the scheme Subsidies on LPG, food and fertiliser kept out of its purview for now Aims at streamlining money disbursal system

New Delhi, November 27
With its “aam aadmi” plank hijacked by Arvind Kejriwal’s new political outfit, the Congress today rushed to showcase its ambitious direct cash transfer scheme as nothing short of a political revolution and a game-changer that will ensure that the common man gets his rightful benefits through an efficient and transparent system.

Coining a new slogan, ‘Aapka paisa aapke haath’, the Congress is pitching the scheme as the UPA-II government’s flagship programme on the lines of the Right to Information Act and the rural job guarantee programme implemented by UPA-I.

A day after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh chaired a high-level meeting clearing the roll-out of the scheme in 51 districts across 16 states from January 1, Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh held a special briefing at the Congress headquarters to claim ownership of this programme.

In fact, Ramesh described the scheme as a fulfilment of Rajiv Gandhi’s dream, who had bemoaned 25 years ago that for every rupee spent by the government, only 15 paise reached the common man.

All set to hard-sell this scheme as a political and not just a government programme, the Congress will soon hold a meeting of the party’s district committee heads to sensitise them about the scheme. Nehru-Gandhi scion and AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi will address this meeting. Chidambaram said benefits from 29 welfare schemes like scholarships and old age pension, operated by different ministries, had been identified for the cash transfer scheme. The beneficiaries, he said, would get the payment due to them through Aadhar-enabled bank accounts.

Describing it as an ambitious scheme having immense benefits, the minister said the beneficiaries were, so far, not getting their payments on time because of red tape. This scheme of direct cash transfers would cut out these delays and ensure there was no leakage, falsification or duplication, he said.

Of the 42 welfare schemes operated by the government, 29 will be covered by the cash transfer scheme when it is launched in 51 districts on January 1.

It will subsequently be extended to cover the entire country. “Ultimately we want to load all schemes onto this system”, Chidambaram said.

Explaining how the money would be credited to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries, Chidambaram said the cash and digitised lists of beneficiaries available with the ministries would be sent to the banks.

The money would be distributed in the rural areas through a network of banking correspondents armed with mini-ATMs for quick and easy disbursal.

The minister said a special meeting of bank officials as well as district collectors would be held to familiarise them with the implementation of the scheme.

Chidambaram also clarified that the subsidies on LPG, food and fertiliser would not be transferred to this scheme as there were complex issues associated with it, which needed to be sorted out.