Aizwal: Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma on Wednesday appealed to people receiving family pensions through fraudulent or invalid documents to voluntarily surrender their Pension Payment Orders (PPOs) during a three-month amnesty period, warning that those found guilty after the deadline will face legal action.
Launching the statewide “Sensitization of Voluntary Surrender of Pension Payment Order (PPO)” campaign in Aizawl, the Chief Minister said the initiative is aimed at preventing the misuse of public funds while ensuring that genuine beneficiaries continue to receive their pensions without disruption.
Under the scheme, beneficiaries who are not legally entitled to family pensions can surrender their PPOs between July 1 and September 30. Those who come forward within this period will not be required to refund the pension amounts already received, as the government has decided to waive recovery during the amnesty window.
Lalduhoma, however, cautioned that once the deadline expires, a government-appointed task force will begin extensive field verification of all family pension beneficiaries across the state. Any person found to have obtained pension benefits using forged or invalid documents will have their pension cancelled and face legal proceedings.
He said fraudulent claims are often supported by fabricated documents, including birth, marriage, divorce, non-marriage, life and income certificates, ration cards and other records. The Chief Minister urged officials responsible for issuing such certificates to exercise greater vigilance, warning that action could also be taken against those found complicit in facilitating fraudulent claims.
Highlighting the need for administrative reforms, Lalduhoma said delays in processing pension cases are frequently caused by inadequate training of officials handling pension-related work. To address the issue, the government is establishing a dedicated training wing to strengthen the capacity of personnel involved in pension administration.
Adviser to the Chief Minister on Finance and Planning, TBC Lalvenchhunga, said pension payments now account for the largest share of Mizoram‘s revenue expenditure. While reaffirming the government’s commitment to supporting all eligible pensioners, he said fraudulent claims based on forged documents would be dealt with firmly.
According to official data, 39,954 people are currently receiving government pensions in Mizoram. The beneficiaries include 22,139 superannuation pensioners, 11,194 family pension recipients, 5,629 pensioners under the Centralised Pension Processing Centre (CPPC), 594 voluntary retirement pensioners, 289 Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) pensioners, 69 invalid pension beneficiaries and 40 compulsory retirement pensioners.
Officials said several ineligible beneficiaries have already surrendered their PPOs since the amnesty programme began earlier this month.