Elderly widows, differently-abled and destitute citizens can now verify identity from home through mobile app
Mumbai: In a major citizen-centric digital reform, the Government of Maharashtra has introduced a mobile-based verification system that will allow beneficiaries of various social welfare pension schemes to submit their annual life certificates from home, eliminating the need for repeated visits to government offices and banks.
The Social Justice and Special Assistance Department on Wednesday issued a Government Resolution approving the use of a digital “Beneficiary Verification App” for identity authentication and submission of life certificates under multiple welfare schemes.
The move is expected to provide significant relief to elderly citizens, widows, destitute individuals, differently-abled persons, orphans, and patients suffering from severe illnesses who often face difficulties traveling to banks or tehsil offices every year to prove they are alive in order to continue receiving pension benefits.
The new system enables beneficiaries to complete the verification process through facial authentication technology linked with the Aadhaar database. Beneficiaries will be able to submit their digital life certificates using their own smartphones, through relatives’ mobile devices, or with assistance from gram panchayats and Common Service Centres (CSCs).
Officials said the app has been developed by the Union Ministry of Rural Development and is designed to ensure both convenience and transparency. Since the authentication process is Aadhaar-linked, the system is also expected to reduce fraudulent claims and help ensure that welfare benefits reach genuine recipients on time.
The facility will be applicable to beneficiaries under schemes such as the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Grant Scheme, Shravanbal Service State Pension Scheme, Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme, widow pension schemes, and other social assistance programs operated by the state.
The government has directed district collectors and tehsil-level authorities to undertake awareness campaigns so that beneficiaries can easily access and use the new system.
At the same time, authorities clarified that beneficiaries who do not own smartphones or are unfamiliar with digital technology will continue to have the option of submitting life certificates through the conventional offline process to ensure that no eligible citizen loses access to benefits.
The initiative is being viewed as a significant step in Maharashtra’s digital governance push, aimed at improving ease of access, reducing administrative burden, and making welfare delivery more efficient and transparent.
