Cabinet to moot sammanpatras for freedom fighters

The UPA government is all set to start distributing “sammanpatras” to freedom fighters.

The UPA government is all set to start distributing “sammanpatras” to freedom fighters. A proposal to this effect, moved by the Home Ministry, is likely to come up for approval at the Union Cabinet meeting tomorrow.

The distribution of the sammanpatras is likely to be launched on October 2, when Rahul Gandhi will be launching the Congress’s “aam admi ke sipahi” to spread awareness about the Centre’s achievements at the grassroot level.

The Home Ministry pointed out that Indira Gandhi had started the scheme of distributing “tamrapatras” to freedom fighters in 1972. The government had originally planned to revive the tamrapatras scheme itself. But with the designs of the new inscriptions not fitting the bill, the Ministry decided to get it converted into sammanpatras.

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The sammanpatras, on an acrylic sheet with wooden frame having steel ‘lipi’ with 22 carat gold plating, will be distributed to all freedom fighters who are recipients of the central samman pensions. While their number stood at about 1.7 lakh in 1980, the current pension outgo indicates their number to be between 30,000 to 40,000. The government hopes to locate about 20,000 pensioners to distribute the sammanpatras.

The Cabinet may also take up a proposal for upgrading about two dozen posts in the MEA. This includes upgrading three joint secretary level posts to additional secretary at the headquarters in Delhi and 16 at the missions abroad.

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