By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Nov 15: In a bid to enhance transparency and ease of access in defence pension services, the Controller of Defence Accounts (Army) Guwahati on Friday organised a comprehensive SPARSH outreach programme for defence pensioners at the Area Accounts Office premises in Shillong.
The SPARSH (System for Pension Administration – Raksha) Project, a flagship initiative of the Ministry of Defence, is an integrated online system aimed at ensuring transparent, efficient and paperless sanction and disbursement of defence pensions. The initiative seeks to bring all defence pensioners onto a single digital platform, enabling them to access pension sanction, disbursement, verification and grievance redressal services with greater convenience.
The event in Shillong was coordinated by Gautam Doley, DCDA, Area Accounts Office, Shillong.
Appreciating the enthusiastic response of pensioners, Ambarish Barman, IDAS, CDA Guwahati, said: “This SPARSH Outreach Program conducted by CDA Guwahati at Shillong aims at supporting defence pensioners and addressing their grievances. It involves direct engagement with veterans to streamline the pension administration process and ensure timely credit of pension directly into the concerned pensioners’ bank accounts.”
“This initiative has been undertaken to bring the entire support ecosystem to the pensioners’ doorstep, making the process of adapting to and utilising the SPARSH system as smooth and easy as possible, particularly regarding the submission of Annual Identification and the Digital Life Certificate (Jeevan Praman). We also plan to undertake many more such initiatives in the future to further enhance service delivery to our esteemed veterans,” Barman added.
Lt. Col. Shabastian Marbaniang (Retd.), Zila Sainik Welfare Officer, Shillong, highlighted the importance of the SPARSH platform, proper documentation and timely updates by pensioners, especially regarding Digital Life Certificate verification.
He also urged pensioners to fully avail the medical facilities provided under ECHS.
Doley noted that the outreach initiative reflects the department’s commitment to timely resolution of pension-related issues and extending maximum support to defence pensioners.
Meanwhile, Supriyo Bhattacharjee, ACDA, CDA Guwahati, stated that special arrangements were made to ensure the seamless submission of Digital Life Certificates, particularly for ageing pensioners.
Around 200 pensioners and their family members from Shillong and nearby areas attended the programme, along with staff from neighbouring Army and MES units.
Dedicated service counters were set up for Aadhaar updation, Digital Life Certificate identification, SPARSH information and grievance redressal. A medical kiosk was also installed by Military Hospital Shillong, and ICICI Bank facilitated banking-related queries and essential financial services.
