Old-age pension (NTR Bharosa)
Who can get Andhra Pradesh’s NTR Bharosa old-age pension (₹4,000 a month), which documents you need and how to apply at the secretariat.
About this guidePending verification
Published on 12-11-2026. Not every fact has been checked against its official source yet: confirm at the office.
For whom: Elderly people from poor families living in Andhra Pradesh, and family members helping them.
Answer the questions below first. Then the documents and steps open.
1Your situation
We show only what your answers need.
- Which of these is the person applying?
- Is the person applying 60 or older? (50 or older, if they belong to a Scheduled Tribe)
- Does your family have a rice card?
- Does your family have any of these? A government employee, or someone who draws a pension from a government job. An income tax payer. A family income of ₹10,000 a month or more in a village, or ₹12,000 or more in a town. 3 acres or more of wet land, or 10 acres or more of dry land, or 10 acres or more of both together. A four-wheeler (a taxi, tractor or auto does not count). Electricity use of 300 units a month or more at home (own or rented). In a town, own property with a built-up area of 750 square feet or more.
- Does anyone in your family already get a pension under this scheme (NTR Bharosa)?
Your answers stay on this phone.
Each step below says who it is for. Confirm yours at the office, then change your answer here.
We could not confirm whether this applies to you
The NTR Bharosa rules say the pensioner must be a local resident of the district. They do not say how someone living in another state is treated. Ask at the Swarna Gramam or Swarna Wardu office of the place in Andhra Pradesh where you would apply.
Sources: 4
We could not confirm whether this applies to you
The NTR Bharosa pension rules we read (the SERP pension website and the September 2026 memo) say nothing about Indian citizens living abroad. They say only that the pensioner must be a local resident of the district, that the applicant's details are checked against Aadhaar eKYC, and that staff visit the home to verify. Before applying, ask at your Swarna Gramam or Swarna Wardu office (village or ward secretariat), or at the MPDO or Municipal Commissioner’s office, whether you can get this pension.
Sources: 4, 3
We could not confirm whether this applies to you
The NTR Bharosa pension rules we read (the SERP pension website and the September 2026 memo) say nothing about OCI cardholders. They say only that the pensioner must be a local resident of the district, that the applicant's details are checked against Aadhaar eKYC, and that staff visit the home to verify. Under the Ministry of Home Affairs notification S.O. 1050(E) of 4 March 2021, an OCI cardholder is a foreign national, not an Indian citizen, and in economic, financial and educational fields the notification does not name has the same rights as a foreigner. Before applying, ask at your Swarna Gramam or Swarna Wardu office (village or ward secretariat), or at the MPDO or Municipal Commissioner’s office whether you can get this pension.
Sources: 4, 3, 8
We could not confirm whether this applies to you
The NTR Bharosa pension rules we read (the SERP pension website and the September 2026 memo) say nothing about foreign nationals. They say only that the pensioner must be a local resident of the district, that the applicant's details are checked against Aadhaar eKYC, and that staff visit the home to verify. Before applying, ask at your Swarna Gramam or Swarna Wardu office (village or ward secretariat), or at the MPDO or Municipal Commissioner’s office, whether you can get this pension.
Sources: 4, 3
This route does not apply to your situation
Under the 2019 order (G.O.Ms.No.174), the old-age pension is for people aged 60 or more, and for Scheduled Tribes 50 or more. Age is taken from the Aadhaar card.
→ Other pensions in the same scheme have their own age rules: for widows, people with disabilities, weavers, fishermen, toddy tappers, traditional cobblers, dappu artists, transgender persons and single women. If you are one of them, ask at the secretariat.
Sources: 2, 3
This route does not apply to your situation
Under the 2019 order (G.O.Ms.No.174), a family that has any of these cannot get the pension. The September 2026 memo says new applications are checked under that order.
→ If your children or relatives do not look after you, see this guide:
→ When children do not look after you: maintenance and protection
Sources: 2, 3
This route does not apply to your situation
The 2019 order (G.O.Ms.No.174) allows one pension in a family, and new applications are checked against the list of existing pensioners.
→ If the pension you already get has stopped, first ask at the secretariat. Then you can call SERP’s social security pensions office in Vijayawada (0866-2410017) or file a grievance on PGRS.
Sources: 2, 3, 6, 5, 7
This route does not apply to your situation
The 2019 order (G.O.Ms.No.174) allows one pension in a family. It allows another only in these cases: a family that has a person with 80% or more disability; dialysis (CKDU) patients, people with severe mental retardation and people with HIV on ART treatment; and pensions sanctioned for certain illnesses under the Health department’s 2019 orders (G.O.Rt.No.551).
→ If your family is one of these cases, ask at the secretariat whether you can apply.
Sources: 2, 3
2Documents you need
Tick the ones you have. They are kept in this browser.
Details
If you don't have it: Given at the Swarna Gramam or Swarna Wardu office. The memo says it is also put up for download on the NTR Bharosa pension website and the Swarna Gramam/Swarna Wardu department’s website.
Not confirmed: We did not see the form; in October 2026 we found no link to it on the pension website. Ask at the office.
Sources: 3
Details
Sources: 3
Details
Sources: 3, 4
Details
Not confirmed: The 2026 memo asks for a rice card or an income certificate, but the SERP website says the pension is for poor (BPL) families holding a white ration card. If you have no rice card, ask at the secretariat whether you qualify.
Sources: 3, 4
Nothing to get ready before these steps.
3Your steps
· Do them in order. Tick each one when it is done.
- Do this now
Know the scheme: Andhra Pradesh’s social security pension scheme is the "NTR Bharosa Pension Scheme" (the name was restored by a June 2024 order) and SERP runs it.
The old-age pension is ₹4,000 a month (from April 2024, by the same order). Who can get it is set by a 2019 order (G.O.Ms.No.174), which the September 2026 memo applies to new applications.
Sources: 1, 2, 3
- Do this now
Ask at your Swarna Gramam or Swarna Wardu office (village or ward secretariat) whether new pension applications are being taken now.
The September 2026 memo set 7 to 16 September 2026 for taking new applications; it does not say whether they are taken after that.
Not confirmed
We found no official notice of whether or when applications will be taken again.
Sources: 3, 6
- Do this now
When applications are open, give the filled form and your documents at the secretariat to the Digital Assistant (in a village) or the Ward Education and Data Processing Secretary (WEDPS, in a town).
They register it online and give you a computer-generated acknowledgement. Keep it.
Not confirmed
The memo does not say whether there is a fee, or whether to bring the original documents or copies. Ask at the secretariat.
Sources: 3
- Do this now
Your application details are checked against your Aadhaar eKYC details.
If they do not match, you are told and asked to bring the correct details. Then go back to the secretariat with them.
Sources: 3
- Do this now
Wait for the home visit.
Before it, a computer check compares your application with the 2019 order’s rules and the list of existing pensioners; if that finds you not eligible, you get the endorsement with the reasons and there is no visit. Otherwise secretariat staff come to your home to check your eligibility and documents, and take your eKYC then if it was not taken before. The Welfare and Education Assistant (WEA) or Ward Welfare and Development Secretary (WWDS) then enters the findings.
Sources: 3
- Do this now
Wait for the decision.
The MPDO (in a village) or the Municipal Commissioner (in a town) decides whether you are eligible and, if you are, recommends you to the CEO of SERP; they do not sanction the pension themselves. After a further check at state level, SERP sanctions it only with the government’s approval and when budget is available.
Sources: 3
- Do this now
Collect a printed copy of your sanction order from the WEA or WWDS at the secretariat.
If you are found not eligible, they give you an endorsement with the reasons.
Sources: 3
- Do this now
Collect the pension every month.
It starts only from the month SERP sanctions it; there are no arrears from the month you applied.
Not confirmed
How the pension is paid now is not confirmed: the 2019 order speaks of delivery at the door, and the pension website’s undated page of payment on the 1st with a fingerprint or iris check. Ask at the secretariat who pays, where and when.
Sources: 3, 2, 4
If something goes wrong
If it is rejectedIf you are found not eligible, get the endorsement with the reasons from the WEA or WWDS at the secretariat.
If you are found not eligible, get the endorsement with the reasons from the WEA or WWDS at the secretariat. If you think it is wrong, file a grievance on PGRS: at the secretariat, at the Collectorate on Monday, on the PGRS website or in its app. You need an Aadhaar number to file it. How long PGRS takes depends on the subject: from 24 hours to 90 days at most. You get the grievance number by SMS. If you are not satisfied with the answer you can re-open it twice (first to a district officer, then to the head of the department).
Public Grievance Redressal System (PGRS) · Open the official page
Sources: 3, 7
If it is lateEven if you are eligible the pension may not start at once: new pensions are sanctioned in phases, only with the government’s approval and when budget is available.
Even if you are eligible the pension may not start at once: new pensions are sanctioned in phases, only with the government’s approval and when budget is available. Ask the WEA or WWDS at the secretariat where your application is. If it is taking very long, file a grievance on PGRS. For the September 2026 applications the memo gave officers these dates: home visits by 21 September, the MPDO’s or Commissioner’s decision by 24 September, SERP’s budget proposal by 26 September 2026. It sets no date by which the pension must start.
Public Grievance Redressal System (PGRS) · Open the official page
Sources: 3, 7
AlsoIf your pension stops, first ask at the secretariat.
If your pension stops, first ask at the secretariat. Then you can call SERP’s social security pensions office in Vijayawada (0866-2410017) or file a grievance on PGRS.
SERP, Social Security Pensions, Vijayawada · Open the official page
Sources: 6, 5, 7
Official websites for this work
- Social Security Pensions (Andhra Pradesh) Old age, widow and disability pensions
- PGRS (Andhra Pradesh) Complain to the state government
Related guides
The 8 official pages and papers this guide is written from
- G.O.Ms.No.43, PR&RD (RD.I) Dept., 13-06-2024: Social Security Pensions, enhancement of the pension amounts and restoring the name of the scheme as 'NTR Bharosa Pension Scheme'Panchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD.I) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Para 2(a), 2(e) and 2(g); para 3, table row 1 (Old Age Pension, Rs.3000 to Rs.4000) (13-06-2024) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.174, PR&RD (RD.I) Dept., 13-12-2019: YSR Pension Kanuka, revised guidelines for sanction of pensions (the eligibility rules the 2026 memo applies to the NTR Bharosa Pension Scheme)Panchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD.I) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Para 4: item 1 (common eligibility: (a) income, (b) age as per Aadhaar, (c) land, (d) four-wheeler, (e) government employee or pensioner, (f) electricity, (g) built-up area in municipal areas, (h) income tax, (i) one pension in the family and its exceptions); item 2(a) (Old Age: 60 years and above, ST category 50 years and above) and 2(b) to 2(l) (the other categories); item 6 (door delivery); item 10 (how age and the family unit are determined) (13-12-2019) · read on 01-11-2026
- Memo No. 3407491/RD.I/A1/2026, 06-09-2026: Process for New Pension Applications under NTR Bharosa Pension Scheme through Swarna Grama and Swarna Wardu, guidelinesPanchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD.I) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Paras 4, 5 and 7; Annexure-I items 1 to 10 and the time lines table; Annexure-II (documents, row 1 Old Age Pension) (06-09-2026) · read on 30-10-2026
- NTR Bharosa Pension Scheme website: About (eligibility, sanction, distribution)Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Andhra Pradesh, Tabs 'Eligibility Criteria and Pension Amount' (criteria common to all pensions), 'Distribution of Pensions', 'Roles and Responsibilities' (Project Director, DRDA; Panchayat Secretary / Bill Collector) · read on 30-10-2026
- NTR Bharosa Pension Scheme website: Contact UsSociety for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Andhra Pradesh, Contact Us: Director, Social Security Pensions, SERP, Vijayawada; phone 0866 2410017 · read on 30-10-2026
- SGSW Department (Swarna Gramam and Swarna Wardu)District Administration, Alluri Sitharama Raju District, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Introduction (roles: 'Redress citizen grievances at the secretariat level itself'); 'Functionaries positioned at Swarna Gramam (Secretariats)' · read on 30-10-2026
- Public Grievance Redressal System (PGRS): FAQ'sReal Time Governance Society (RTGS), Government of Andhra Pradesh, Who can register a grievance and how; how to check the status; re-opening a grievance; the time limit for redress; what PGRS does not take · read on 30-10-2026
- Notification S.O. 1050(E), 4 March 2021: rights of an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) Cardholder, under section 7B(1) of the Citizenship Act, 1955Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India (Gazette of India, Extraordinary), Para (5) and Explanation (1) (04-03-2021) · read on 30-10-2026