Distressing! 80-year-old woman crawls nearly 2 km to collect pension in eastern India
In a distressing incident in northeastern India’s Odisha, an 80-year-old woman was forced to crawl nearly 2 kilometers to the panchayat office to collect her old-age pension.
The incident took place in the Telkoi block of Keonjhar district on September 23.
According to reports, Pathuri Dehury, a resident of Raisuan gram panchayat, struggles to walk due to old age and illness. “We meet our daily expenses from the pension money. When no one came home to disburse the pension, I had no other option than to crawl 2 km to reach the panchayat office,” she explained.
Raisuan sarpanch Bagun Champia stated that after learning about Pathuri’s case, the panchayat extension officer (PEO) and supply assistants were instructed to deliver allowances and rations to her home starting next month. “We have directed PEOs to disburse allowances to beneficiaries who are unable to reach GP offices,” confirmed Telkoi BDO Geeta Murmu.