Rajahmundry: Pensioners are facing a tough time to register their biometrics, mainly a thumb impression, to get Aadhaar-based digital life certificate at treasury offices and also at the government-run Mee Seva centres.
A life certificate done annually is mandatory for a pensioner in order to get their monthly pension.
To make matters simpler, the Centre had introduced a software ‘Jeevan Pramaan’, via which pensioners can register their biometrics like a thumb impression or Iris so that they get Aadhaar-based digital life certificate once in a year and get their monthly pension uninterrupted.
This way, the certification can also be done online, and the pensioner need not trudge to the bank or post office to get a life certificate every year.
But the software makers had not accounted for the fact that the thumb impressions change with age. Now pensioners are complaining that with age, their thumb impressions taken several years ago during the issue of Aadhaar cards, are no longer the same.
With the pensioners being asked to visit the treasury office or government-run Mee Seva centres, to try once again, the senior citizens’ patience is running thin, with mental tension about not being able to collect their pension on time, adding to their woes.
Currently, the Andhra Pradesh government directive to the government authorities is to register biometrics of pensioners from January 1 to April 2, so that their life certificates can be digitalised.
Adding to the trouble, the privately-run Mee Seva centres and Internet cafes are charging a fee from the pensioners to download the Jeevan Pramaan software as well as for the registration.
Also, there is a lot of confusion about the process and how it can be implemented.
District treasury officer Ms P. Parvathi said, “Any pensioner can register his or her biometrics in Jeevan Pramaan online from anywhere so that their digital life certificate is renewed and they will get their monthly pensions promptly. In case the biometrics do not match after repeated attempts, we are accepting submission of life certificate in person at our offices by the pensioners so that they get pension without any interruption.”
In short, this means that pensioners do not have to go to any private cafe to get the biometrics registered. They can download the software and register their biometrics.
In case, despite repeated efforts, it does not match, the pensioners would then have to go to the treasury houses to get the certification physically done.
