Families in Karsog Nagar Panchayat, Mandi district, Himachal Pradesh, facing severe financial strain due to serious illnesses will now receive priority for inclusion in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) list, provided they meet the established eligibility criteria. This revised directive from the state government aims to expedite the provision of welfare scheme benefits to vulnerable households.
Information was available with The Chenab Times that Alisha Chauhan, Sub-Divisional Magistrate and secretary of Karsog Nagar Panchayat, has formally urged residents across all wards to review their eligibility under the updated guidelines. They have been instructed to submit all necessary documentation by November 10.
Eligible families can submit their applications and supporting documents through their respective ward members or by visiting the Nagar Panchayat office directly. The final determination of eligibility will be contingent upon the thorough verification of all submitted documents and applicant information.
The revised guidelines stipulate that priority will be accorded to households that ordinarily reside within the urban local body’s jurisdiction and whose total annual income from all sources does not surpass Rs 75,000. Special consideration will also be given to homeless and destitute families, as well as households comprising legally released bonded labourers.
Further categories eligible for priority inclusion encompass households residing in single-room kutcha houses. Additionally, families without an adult member aged between 27 and 59 years, and those headed by women without an adult male member within the same age bracket, will be considered. Families headed by widowed, unmarried, divorced, or abandoned women are also included in this priority group.
According to Alisha Chauhan, families where the primary earning member suffers from a serious illness, leading to significant financial distress, will also be eligible for inclusion. The list of specified serious illnesses includes conditions such as cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, muscular dystrophy, haemophilia, and thalassemia.
Households with members who have a disability exceeding 40 per cent, landless households, and those whose primary livelihood depends on daily wages or work in the unorganised sector will also be assessed for eligibility under specific stipulated conditions. Households composed solely of orphans or elderly members, without an earning adult, will likewise be considered eligible for inclusion.
Applicants are required to furnish pertinent documentation, which may include medical certificates issued by competent authorities, disability certificates, and income certificates, as applicable to their specific circumstances.
Conversely, the revised rules outline several exclusion criteria. Families possessing motorised two-wheelers, four-wheelers, or registered agricultural machinery such as tractors and harvesters will be deemed ineligible for the BPL list. Households with members employed in government departments, public sector undertakings, government-aided autonomous institutions, local bodies, or companies as salaried employees, including specified outsourced government-sector workers, will also be excluded.
Other grounds for exclusion include the operation of a registered commercial enterprise. Households with a combined monthly domestic and commercial electricity consumption exceeding 125 units will not be considered. Furthermore, families with any member registered under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime or those who pay income tax or professional tax are ineligible. Families residing in houses that feature two or more pucca rooms or possess a pucca roof will also be excluded from the revised guidelines.
The Karsog Nagar Panchayat has reiterated its appeal to all eligible residents to ensure the timely submission of their applications before the November 10 deadline to facilitate the subsequent verification process.
The Chenab Times News Desk