No pension for five months, kin of Tamil Nadu caste atrocity victims in distress

500 families await money; Adi Dravidar welfare dept officials say delay due to fund issues

Saravanan M P

MADURAI: Hundreds of Dalit families, whose relatives were killed in caste atrocity cases, have not got the Rs 7,500 monthly pension for the past five months. The Tamil Nadu government started giving enhanced pension for these families from November 2023, sources said. According to Dalit Liberation Movement (DLM) state secretary C Karuppiah, around 506 beneficiary families across the state have not received the amount from March this year.

According to Adi Dravidar welfare department officials about 49 families in Madurai, 29 families in Dindigul, and several families in Tiruppur have not got their pension. “The pension scheme has not been scrapped. There is a delay in disbursal of the monthly payment due to fund allocation issues. It will be sorted out soon,” said a departnent official in Madurai.

Speaking to TNIE, Karuppiah said, “These are not isolated cases. Around 506 beneficiary families are suffering for past five months. Almost all the families are poor and some of them have no male members as the husbands and sons had died in caste clashes.”

K Murugambal (51) of Dindigul said, “My son Dinesh was studying in Class 11 when he was hacked to death by the brother of a girl and his friends over suspicion of relationship in 2010. A case was registered under the SC/ST Act and the accused were convicted by the Dindigul sub-court. I received a compensation of Rs 75,000 and was promised Rs 1,000 per month as family pension under SC/ST Act.

But the money wasn’t paid. In 2021, I was paid Rs 1 lakh as arrears of the total pension. In November 2023, a family pension of Rs 7,500 per month was offered. But, after four months, the pension amount got stopped.” S Thanikodi of Madurai said, “My sister Lakshmi was murdered by a youth from a dominant community at Thottampatti village in Madurai in 2007.

After much delay and judge’s warning, the culprit was arrested and a case was registered under the SC/ST Act. The accused was sentenced to life in 2019. We received a compensation of Rs 75,000. In 2021, we received Rs 1 lakh as compensation arrears. We got Rs 7,500 monthly pension for four months between November 2023 and March 2024, but it was stopped later.“

Adi Dravidar welfare department secretary G Lakshmi Priya could not be reached for her comments.

Courtesy : TNIE

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