Shravan Bal Seva Rajya Nivruttivetan Yojana (Shravanbal Seva State Pension Scheme)

What is the Shravanbal Seva State Pension Scheme?

Shravan Bal Seva Rajya Nivruttivetan Yojana is the Maharashtra state old-age pension scheme run by the Social Justice & Special Assistance Department. The scheme is commonly written as Shravanbal Seva Rajya Nivruttivetan Yojana or simply "Shravan Bal Yojana", and it exists to give a monthly cash income to destitute senior citizens in the state who have no dependable source of support.

According to the Social Justice & Special Assistance Department page for the scheme, Shravan Bal Seva Rajya Nivruttivetan Yojana pays Rs 1,500 per month to each eligible beneficiary aged 65 years and above whose name is in the Below Poverty Line list or whose annual family income is below Rs 21,000. District collectorate pages, including Nagpur and Nashik, carry the same figure.

Shravanbal is administered at the taluka level, not from Mumbai. The Tehsildar is the operating authority, and the same Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana branch of the Tehsil office that handles destitute pensions for people below 65 also handles Shravanbal applications for those aged 65 and above. This is why villagers are often told to go to the "Sanjay Gandhi branch" when they ask about the old-age pension.

Two categories inside one scheme

Shravan Bal Seva Rajya Nivruttivetan Yojana has historically been operated in two categories:

• Category A covers destitute persons aged 65 and above whose annual family income is below Rs 21,000 but whose names are not in the BPL list. The entire pension for this group comes from the Maharashtra state budget.
• Category B covers destitute persons aged 65 and above whose names are in the BPL list. For this group the state pension is paid alongside the central Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme component, with the state topping up the difference.

For the beneficiary the practical outcome is the same: the department and district pages state that an approved beneficiary receives Rs 1,500 per month. The category only determines how the money is booked between the state and central shares.

Who is eligible for the Shravanbal Seva pension?

You can get the pension if:

• You are 65 years of age or above.
• You are a resident of Maharashtra, and district guidance requires at least 15 years of residence in the state.
• Your annual family income is below Rs 21,000, or your name appears in the Below Poverty Line list.
• You are destitute, meaning you have no assured means of maintenance.
• You have a bank or post office account in your own name for DBT.

You cannot apply if:

• You are below 65 years of age. Destitute persons under 65 are covered by the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana instead, which is a separate application at the same office.
• You already receive a regular monthly financial benefit under another government scheme. District pages state plainly that a person drawing a recurring monthly government benefit is not eligible under this scheme.
• Your annual family income is Rs 21,000 or more and your name is not in the BPL list.
• You have not completed 15 years of residence in Maharashtra.

Age and income are the two criteria that decide almost every case. Where an applicant has no birth record, the age certificate issued by the medical superintendent of a government hospital is the document that taluka offices accept in place of a birth certificate.

What documents are required for the Shravanbal pension?

Take the originals and one self-attested photocopy set. The Tehsil office keeps the copies and returns the originals after verification.

How to apply for the Shravanbal Seva pension

1. Collect the application form from the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana branch of your Tehsil office, the Talathi office, the Collector's office, or download the Sanjay Gandhi Yojana / Shravanbal Yojana form published on your district collectorate website.
2. Get the supporting certificates first. The Tehsildar-issued income certificate and the age proof are the two that take the longest, so apply for them before filling the pension form.
3. Fill the form in full, paste a passport-size photograph, sign or thumb it, and attach self-attested copies of age proof, residence proof, income or BPL proof, Aadhaar and the bank passbook first page.
4. Submit the form at the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana branch of the Tehsil office or the Talathi office, or upload it through the Aaple Sarkar portal, a Setu centre, or a Maha e-Seva Kendra.
5. Collect the acknowledgement receipt with the inward number. This number is what you quote at every follow-up visit.
6. Wait for the taluka committee decision. The Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana committee chaired by the Tehsildar scrutinises applications and sanctions the pension.
7. Check the first credit in your bank passbook once the sanction order is issued. Pension is paid by Direct Benefit Transfer, so no cash is handed out at any office.

How to check your Shravanbal pension status

1. Visit the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana branch of your Tehsil office with the acknowledgement receipt and quote the inward number.
2. Ask whether your file was placed before the taluka committee and, if it was rejected, ask for the reason to be recorded on the file.
3. For an application submitted online, sign in to the portal you used; Aaple Sarkar or the special assistance system at sas.mahait.org, and open the application tracking option.
4. Once sanctioned, verify each month's credit in the bank or post office passbook. The credit appears as a DBT entry, not as a counter payment.

Why Shravanbal pension applications get rejected

• Age below 65 on the date of application. This is the single largest reason and the file is usually redirected to Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana.
• Income certificate above Rs 21,000 a year, with the applicant not in the BPL list.
• Another monthly government pension already being drawn, which the scheme rules exclude.
• Residence proof short of 15 years in Maharashtra.
• Bank account not Aadhaar-seeded, which does not reject the application but stops the money from reaching the beneficiary.
• Incomplete form — a missing photograph, unsigned declaration or missing passbook copy sends the file back.

Most of these are fixable. An income certificate can be re-applied for with correct family income details, and Aadhaar seeding is done free at the bank branch. Re-submit at the same Tehsil office rather than starting a fresh application elsewhere.

Where to complain about Shravanbal pension problems

Take grievances in this order:

1. Naib Tehsildar / Tehsildar, Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana branch at your taluka, the first authority for delays, rejections and stopped payments.
2. Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) of your division for matters the Tehsil office does not resolve.
3. District Collector's office, which chairs the district-level monitoring of the special assistance schemes.
4. Social Justice & Special Assistance Department, Government of Maharashtra, through the contact page on sjsa.maharashtra.gov.in.

Applying for Shravan Bal Seva Rajya Nivruttivetan Yojana is free. No agent can charge a fee to "get the pension sanctioned", and no official will ask for the beneficiary's ATM card or OTP. The pension reaches only the beneficiary's own Aadhaar-seeded account.

Key points to remember

• Shravanbal pension is Rs 1,500 per month, paid by DBT.
• Eligibility turns on age 65+, income below Rs 21,000 a year or BPL listing, and 15 years of residence in Maharashtra.
• The Tehsil office's Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Anudan Yojana branch is the place to apply, follow up and complain.
• There is no annual application window; applications are accepted through the year and decided by the taluka committee as it meets.