Patna: Bihar’s Social Welfare Department has identified significant discrepancies in its key pension programs, revealing that over two lakh deceased beneficiaries are still listed, as per a high-level assessment led by department secretary Vandana Preyashi on Wednesday. The meeting, conducted on November 19, 2025, evaluated the status of various social security initiatives, such as old-age pensions, disability assistance, widow pensions, death benefits, and marriage grants. Officials were urged to enhance monitoring and expedite performance in meeting targets. Preyashi emphasized that these schemes are directly connected to the public, making timeliness and accountability essential. During the district-wise evaluation of physical verification, officials discovered that more than two lakh beneficiaries enrolled in the Indira Gandhi Old Age Pension Scheme had passed away.
Consequently, the secretary issued strict orders: Complete physical verification without delay, remove all deceased beneficiaries from the rolls immediately, and recover any pension funds transferred to deceased individuals. Preyashi mandated that physical verification for disability, widow, and old-age pension schemes be conducted through Common Service Centres (CSCs). District Social Security officials are to work directly with CSC managers. CSC representatives indicated that nearly 80,000 staff members would be deployed to facilitate this large-scale process. Districts were also instructed to notify all pension holders that life authentication via CSC will be provided at no cost, and no CSC worker is allowed to charge for this service.
Life authentication is set to begin on December 1, 2025, with all districts required to complete necessary preparations beforehand. To avoid exclusions due to technological issues, CSC centres must be equipped with fingerprint authentication, iris scanning, and facial recognition. This is to ensure that no pensioner is excluded due to inadequate equipment, according to the secretary. The department also reviewed progress across several schemes: Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme: Of the target of 1,27,100 beneficiaries, 1,10,863 have been enrolled. Districts were directed to accelerate enrolment to meet the full target. Kabir Antyeshti (Funeral Assistance) Scheme: Only 26,141 beneficiaries have been covered against an annual goal of 73,977. Districts must achieve 50% coverage by December 2025.
National Family Benefit Scheme: Out of 35,859 eligible beneficiaries, only 8,566 have been reached thus far. Districts are also required to attain 50% coverage by December 2025. In her concluding remarks, Preyashi instructed officials to ensure complete transparency and sensitivity during verification. She reminded districts that no pension payments should be made into the accounts of deceased individuals and that any such transfers must be recovered following the standard operating procedures. All pending applications across schemes must be processed promptly, and achieving scheme-specific targets should remain a priority.
