Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday, 7 July 2026, disbursed approximately ₹145.42 crore in pension funds to 9,80,950 beneficiaries of various schemes run by the state's Social Welfare Department, transferring the amount directly into recipients' bank accounts through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mechanism.

Context

Addressing officials at the event, CM Dhami announced that the pension disbursal covered multiple schemes operating under the Uttarakhand Social Welfare Department. Speaking in Hindi, he stated: 'aaj samaj kalyan vibhag ke antargat sanchaalit vibhinn pension yojanaon ke 9,80,950 laabharthiyon ko DBT ke maadhyam se lagbhag ₹145.42 crore ki pension raashi hastantarit ki' — 'today, approximately ₹145.42 crore in pension funds were transferred via DBT to 9,80,950 beneficiaries of various pension schemes run under the Social Welfare Department.' Cabinet Minister Khajan Dass and MLA Durgeshwar Lal were also present at the occasion.

Policy Backdrop

The pension disbursal draws from the framework established by the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP), introduced in 1995, which provides the foundation for state-level old-age, widow, and disability pensions now channelled through DBT. The DBT mechanism, launched nationally in 2013, is designed to reduce leakages by crediting funds directly to beneficiaries' bank accounts, bypassing intermediaries.

At the same event, CM Dhami directed officials to complete construction of three hostels under the Babu Jagjivan Ram Chhatrawas Yojana — a central scheme launched in 2007 for Scheduled Caste students — by October 2026 without exception. The three facilities are: Babu Jagjivan Ram Boys' Hostel, Doiwala (Dehradun); Pinus (Nainital); and Babu Jagjivan Ram Girls' Hostel, Someshwar (Almora).

Stakeholders and Impact

The nearly 9.81 lakh pension beneficiaries span vulnerable groups including the elderly, widows, and persons with disabilities across Uttarakhand. The hostel projects, once completed, will expand residential infrastructure for Scheduled Caste students in three districts — Dehradun, Nainital, and Almora — supporting access to education for marginalised communities in both hill and plains regions of the state.

CM Dhami further directed officials to redesign all departmental schemes with a 25-year planning horizon, accounting for future needs, challenges, and public expectations, so that every eligible person in society receives maximum benefit. This long-range mandate signals an intent to align welfare delivery with demographic and fiscal projections over the coming decades.

What's Next

The immediate benchmark is the October 2026 deadline for completing the three hostel construction projects. Officials have been put on notice to meet this timeline 'under all circumstances,' as the Chief Minister put it. Beyond infrastructure, the directive to prepare a 25-year vision for social welfare schemes could feed into the state's upcoming budget deliberations or a dedicated policy document from the Social Welfare Department. Progress on both fronts — hostel completion and long-term scheme redesign — will be a measure of the department's implementation capacity in the months ahead.