Despite living in stark poverty, an octogenarian woman remains bereft of all the government benefits including old age allowance etc. It seems her luck too deprived her of getting a house under the government scheme.
Snehalata Chakma, an 80 years old woman is a resident of far flung Garia Para under Thakur Chhara ADC under Gandachhera sub-division. Along with her son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren, Snehalata is living in a dilapidated hut.
“Recently, my bamboo-made and the thatched-roof hut was damaged in recent Kaal Baishakhi. I informed the local administration – but in vain”, she lamented.
She also claimed she is not receiving an Old age allowance.
“I and four others remain dependent on the paltry earnings of my son to survive as I cannot work and earn at this age. I have no clue as to why I was not considered for the Old Age Pension scheme of the Government”, Snehalata said in a feeble voice.
Narrating her plight, she said, her husband’s name was enlisted for house construction under the Government scheme – but, he died before the process started and his name was deleted from the beneficiaries list instead of replacing the deceased’s name with that of Snehalata.
As a result, she has no option but to live in her thatched and damaged house.
“If I get Old Age allowance and my family gets a house to live in, at least, I will be able to spend my last part of the life in a better way”, Snehalata commented. (Courtesy: Tripura Times)