BENGALURU: The Bengaluru Postal Region on Friday opened a postal account for an elderly, physically challenged, rag picker who had never received any government benefits as he did not have a savings account. Friday is observed as Antyodaya Diwas, a part of the National Postal Week 2023.
The individual is Periasami Govindan, a native of Dharmapuri in TN, who moved to Bengaluru long ago. Antyodaya Diwas is celebrated to mark the birth anniversary of leader Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay who was popular for upliftment of the poor and less fortunate. Chief Postmaster General, Karnataka Circle, Rajendra S Kumar, spoke to TNIE, “I found this elderly, disabled person on St Marks Road sorting out waste material.
When interacting with him, I came to know he collected waste for his survival. He was not receiving any form of State support despite his age and disability. I found he did not have any account and directed my staff at the nearby office to open a Postal Savings account for him immediately.” Govindan had no house of his own and resided at a Charma Kuteera (Cobbler shop).
“Since he had an Aadhaar card with his Tamil Nadu address, he was able to immediately open a savings account at Museum Road post office. The Postal Department made an initial contribution of Rs 1,000 to open it. This is very important as social security benefits are directly transferred to the account of those eligible,” the CPMG added. The department now plans to approach the State government and facilitate the benefits due to him.