Mayor slams 'vested interests' for spreading falsehood

Tirupati: Categorically stating that no eligible poor was being denied pension benefit, Mayor Dr R Sirisha accused the vested interests of trying to malign the image of the State government by spreading baseless rumours on pension benefit.

The Mayor along with Deputy Mayor Mudra Narayana and corporators held a media conference here on Tuesday to deny the reports in a section of media and social media stating that pensions were going to be stopped for about 2,500 aged people who were served notices seeking explanation for continuing the benefit.

The issuing of notices to the pension beneficiaries created flutter in the city while many criticised the issuing of notices to the beneficiaries as it unnecessarily created confusion and fear among the poor availing the social security benefit from the government.

Against the backdrop, the Mayor along with 49 corporators through the media appealed to them not to believe the reports that the pension will be stopped to the 2,500 persons who received letters from authorities.

Dr Sirisha said that due to some discrepancies in linking ration cards with Aadhaar, the ration cards were temporarily not in force,

resulting in blocking the pension benefit while in other cases the officials issued notices which is a routine process for verification of the genuineness of the beneficiaries, coming handy to the critics of the government to spread rumours creating panic among poor beneficiaries.

Seeking the people not to believe the baseless reports, she affirmed that she will not allow not even a single eligible beneficiary deprived of pension and added that in any case of stoppage of pension, she will see it is restored.

City MLA Bhumana Karunakar Reddy and corporators of 50 divisions will be fully responsible for continuing the pensions, she averred.

Senior YSRCP leader and corporator S K Babu said that the opposition parties were waiting to throw mud on them and expressed his ire on those spreading rumours.