Kejriwal announces new old-age pension scheme for 80K applicants

AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Monday announced the launch of 80,000 new old-age pensions in Delhi, expanding the financial support to a total of 5.30 lakh senior citizens.

Under the enhanced scheme, senior citizens, aged 60–69, will receive Rs 2,000 per month, while those aged 70 and above will receive Rs 2,500.

Further, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and minority communities will receive an additional Rs 500.

Announcing the development, Kejriwal said, “When our government was formed in 2015, Delhi had 3,32,000 senior citizens receiving pensions. Over the past nine years, we added 1,25,000 more pensions, bringing the total to 4,50,000. With the addition of 80,000 pensions, nearly 5,30,000 senior citizens in Delhi will now benefit.”

The former Delhi CM noted that pensions had been a long-standing demand ofm senior citizens. “Wherever I went — be it padyatras or public interactions — elderly mothers and fathers would ask me to get their pensions restarted or help them apply for new ones,” he said.

He claimed that the portal which had gone live on Sunday had already received over 10,000 applications within 24 hours.

Kejriwal said the amount increased since the AAP Government came to power in 2015, he said, then they were given pension of Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,500 for people between the age of 60-69 and 70 above, respectively.

Hitting out at the BJP, Kejriwal said, “In Delhi, where we have a single-engine government, senior citizens receive Rs 2,500. In states with double-engine governments, they barely get Rs 500–600. It is clear that choosing a double-engine government is a loss. Why do you need a double-engine when a single-engine can do much better?”

He further said that when he was in jail in connection with a corruption and money laundering case related to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, many projects were stalled. “But halting pensions for senior citizens was especially painful to me. An elderly person waits eagerly for Rs 2,000 or Rs 2,500 to cover their basic needs. Stopping that is nothing short of a sin. The first thing I did after coming out was to resume their pending pensions,” he added.

“I owe my release from jail to the blessings of these elderly. By launching these new pensions, I am not doing them a favour — I am expressing my heartfelt gratitude to them.” he remarked. While CM Atishi praised Kejriwal, saying Delhi had witnessed governance that cared for everyone—women, children, those living in slums, and especially senior citizens.

Social Welfare Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said, “Senior citizens in Delhi suffered when their pensions were stopped for several months. After Arvind Kejriwal was released, their pending pensions were resumed immediately, and now 80,000 new pensions have been introduced,” he said.