What Benefits & Facilities are Freedom Fighters entitled to?
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
August 2, 2017
Respecting & rewarding is the least we could do for the freedom fighters. As part of the Freedom Fighter Pension scheme, the government spent a total of 8669 crore rupees on pensions and an additional 261 crore rupees on free railway passes in the last 13 years. As on date, more than 37000 beneficiaries receive pension under this scheme.
Every Independence day, we recollect and remind ourselves about the great sacrifices by our forefathers. But what exactly is the government doing for those freedom fighters and their families? The Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension Scheme is aimed at providing pension to freedom fighters & their dependent families. As of March 2017, a total of 37,356 individuals  receive pension under this scheme.
Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension Scheme
During the Silver Jubilee year of Independence (1972), a Central Scheme for grant of pension to freedom fighters and their eligible dependents (where freedom fighters have already expired) was introduced by Government of India. In 1980, the Scheme was liberalized and renamed as Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension Scheme, 1980 and made effective from August 1980.
The Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension Scheme, 1980 was introduced to extend the pension scheme to the freedom fighters and their dependent families. The scheme is now known as the Swatantrata Sainik Samman Yojana.
The following list of movements/mutinies are recognized for award of pension under this scheme.
Who is eligible?
The following categories of freedom fighters are eligible for the Samman Pension under the Scheme. Anyone who wishes to apply for pension under this scheme has to follow the guidelines prescribed by the Ministry of Home Affairs.
What is the pension amount?
The following amount of pension is extended to various categories of freedom fighters and their dependents. This pension amount is not taxable.
What other facilities are extended to Freedom Fighters?
Apart from the pension amount as mentioned above, Freedom Fighters are also extended the following facilities
Expenditure on Railway passes was Nil in the last two years
The government spent a total of Rs 8669 crore on pensions from 2004-05 to 2016-17. The expenditure on free railway passes during the same period was Rs 261 crore. The government also spent Rs 2.1 crore on the freedom fighter home in Delhi.
The expenditure on free railway passes has been decreasing in the last 4 years. Only Rs 3 lakh was spent on free railway passes from 2014-15 to 2016-17. The reasons for nil expenditure are not known. It could be that the government is not reimbursing the railways or that the freedom fighters are not travelling.
Most Pensioners in Andhra Pradesh & West Bengal
As of March 2017, a total of 37356 individuals were receiving the freedom fighters pension including dependents. Of these, 12657 are freedom fighters themselves while 23127 are spouse pensioners. An additional 1572 are daughter pensioners. Of the states, both Andhra Pradesh & West Bengal account for 4937 pensioners each while Maharashtra has 4738 pensioners. Ten (10) states have more than 1000 pensioners each and these 10 states make up for 80% of all the pensioners. Close to 50% of all daughter pensioners are from West Bengal.