Guwahati, February 23 Union Minister Jitendra Singh said that over one crore pensioners across the country had digitally submitted their life certificates in the last 8-10 months.
Singh, the minister of state for personnel, public grievances, and pensions, stated that the central government was utilizing technology to the maximum extent possible to provide benefits to citizens.
"Previously, applying for a pension was a complex process involving multiple forms and NOCs. Nowadays, only one form is required, and everything is online. A significant amount of simplification has occurred over the last 10-12 years," he said at a pension-related event here.
Various citizen-centric initiatives undertaken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ease the difficulties faced by retired persons, Singh stated.
"The digital life certificate is one such revolutionary step. In the last 8-10 months, over 1.11 crore face recognition scans have been conducted. This has become a mass movement," he asserted.
The Union Minister claimed that the Modi government had not introduced any new rules related to pensions, but had instead removed the outdated and obsolete norms.
"People who were familiar with the Northeast before 2014 can understand the transformation in the region. The mindset of the people has changed, and young people are now looking for opportunities outside the region," he added.
Singh asserted that the biggest contribution of PM Modi is "integrating" the Northeast with the rest of India.
The Union Minister was addressing the 58th Pre-Retirement Counselling (PRC) Workshop, Pensioners' Awareness Programme, and Bankers' Awareness Programme, organized by the Department of Pension and Pensioners' Welfare.
Speaking on the occasion, BJP Lok Sabha MP Dilip Saikia said that the role of pensioners in society is very important.
"They retire after providing long service to society. Many people retire, but they are not tired. They always want to serve the nation," he added.
Saikia claimed that a lot of work has been done in the last 10 years in reforming the system, especially related to pensioners and their pensions.
