Vellore Collector’s gesture ensures livelihood to 2 widows

The Collector promised a job for Parvathi in the Social Welfare Department and gave assistance to Kalaivani to open a petty shop to sustain their livelihood apart from sanctioning government widow’s pension and houses grants.

Earlier, on Tuesday, 22-year-old Parvathi came to the Collector’s office with her three children seeking help. She was a total destitute with no place to go. As the Collector was not present in the office at the time, the subordinates told her to wait for the Collector to come back and arrange for her children’s education in hostels. Thinking that the officials will separate her and the children she left.

When Collector Shanmuga Sundaram heard about her visit, he instructed the officials to find her out and help. Revenue and Social Welfare Department officials scoured Pillayar Kuppam on Chennai Vellore Highway and located the woman. The Collector then promised to provide the woman with widow’s pension and also allocate her a house under either a Centre or state government scheme.

Shanmuga Sundaram promised to accommodate the woman in an office assistant vacancy in the Social Welfare Department or place her in charge of a SW department hostel so that her children would also receive education. Meanwhile, officials provided her with groceries for one month.

In the second case, Vellore-based social worker Dinesh Saravanan highlighted the plight of widow Kalaivani and her 10-year-old daughter Kavya of Alamelumangapuram who lived in the ruins of a dilapidated house on social media. Taking note of it Shanmuga Sundaram immediately provided her with the Rs 1,000 widow’s pension, free house site patta, orders to build a government provided green house. The local Red Cross provided her Rs 5,000 cash for expenses. The Collector also allotted her Rs 3,000 to set up a petty shop. He handed over the largess to Kalaivani on Wednesday.