Pension for widows and single women (Cheyutha)
Who can get Telangana's monthly Cheyutha (Aasara) pension for widows and single women, which documents you need and where to apply.
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: Widows, and single women who live apart from their husband or have never married, from poor families in Telangana, 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?
- Which of these describes you?
- Is your household's total income under ₹1,50,000 a year in a village, or under ₹2,00,000 a year in a town or city?
- Does your family have any of these? More than 3 acres of wet (irrigated) land, or more than 7.5 acres of dry land. A car or other big vehicle. A large business (a rice mill, oil mill, petrol pump or the like). You or a family member in a government, public sector, private, outsourced or contract job. A government pension or a freedom fighter's pension. (For single women also: another social security pension already, or a pension from any public or private employer.)
- Where do you live?
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 Aasara/Cheyutha pension orders (G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014 and its amendments) and the application form do not mention foreign nationals. Before applying, ask the Panchayat Secretary (in a village), the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) or the district pension officer (APO) whether you can get this pension.
Sources: 1, 2, 14, 6, 11
We could not confirm whether this applies to you
The Aasara/Cheyutha pension orders (G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014 and its amendments) and the application form do not mention OCI cardholders. 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 the Panchayat Secretary (in a village), the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) or the district pension officer (APO) whether you can get this pension.
Sources: 1, 2, 14, 6, 15, 11
We could not confirm whether this applies to you
The Aasara/Cheyutha pension orders (G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014 and its amendments) and the application form do not say whether an Indian citizen living abroad can get it. Under those orders the pension is collected each month at the pay point, confirmed with your fingerprint or iris. Before applying, ask the Panchayat Secretary (in a village), the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) or the district pension officer (APO) whether you can get this pension.
Sources: 1, 2, 14, 6, 11
This route does not apply to your situation
A married woman living apart from her husband can get the single women's pension only if she is over 18 and has lived apart for more than one year (G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017).
→ You can apply once you have lived apart for more than a year. If you need help or free legal aid now, see this guide:
→ Women's helpline and protection from domestic violence
Sources: 3
This route does not apply to your situation
An unmarried woman can get the single women's pension only if she is over 30 in a village, or over 35 in a town (G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017).
→ You can apply once you are over 30 in a village, or over 35 in a town.
Sources: 3
This route does not apply to your situation
This pension is not given if the household's yearly income is over ₹1,50,000 in a village or ₹2,00,000 in a town (G.O.Ms.No.23 of 2014; for single women, G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017).
→ If you think this is wrong, ask the MPDO or Municipal Commissioner's office why. Your district pension officer's (APO's) phone number is on the Cheyutha website under 'APOs Contact Details'.
Sources: 2, 3, 1, 11
We could not confirm whether this applies to you
G.O.Ms.No.17 of 2014 said a family with any of these cannot get this pension. G.O.Ms.No.23 of 2014 changed that: they bar only a family whose income is also over the limit, and you said yours is under it. But the 2026 application form makes you declare that your family has no such land, vehicle or large business, and that neither you nor a family member has such a job or a government or freedom fighter's pension. A single woman who already gets another social security pension, or a pension from any public or private employer, cannot get the single women's pension (G.O.Ms.No.27 of 2017). So ask at the MPDO's, Municipal Commissioner's or Tahsildar's office before you apply.
Sources: 1, 2, 3, 6
2Documents you need
Tick the ones you have. They are kept in this browser.
Details
At the top, under 'Pension Type', widows tick 'Widow' and single women tick 'Single Women'.
If you don't have it: Ask at the panchayat or municipal office. The Cheyutha website has Telugu and English forms under 'Cheyutha Application Forms'; anyone may download them.
Sources: 6, 7, 8
Details
What the photo must look like- Stick it in the 'Applicant Photo' box on the first page of the form.
Not confirmed: The orders and the form only ask for a photograph; they say nothing about its size, colour or background. Ask at the panchayat or municipal office what photo they need.
Sources: 1, 3, 6
Details
Sources: 1, 6
Details
Not confirmed: The form's checklist says 'Husband Death Certificate & Aadhar Card' and does not say whose card. The 2014 order asks only for the death certificate.
Sources: 1, 6, 7
Details
A divorce or separation document, or for women who have never married, a certificate that you are unmarried. Without these, the report of a local enquiry by the Tahsildar.
Sources: 3, 6, 7
Details
Any one of: a birth certificate; a school certificate; a voter card (the electoral roll). The 2017 order also accepts Aadhaar as proof of age.
Sources: 3, 6
Details
Any one of: a ration (food security) card; an income certificate from the Tahsildar (Revenue Department).
Sources: 2, 3, 6
Details
A savings account in your name, showing the account number and IFSC code.
Sources: 1, 3, 6
Nothing to get ready before these steps.
3Your steps
· Do them in order. Tick each one when it is done.
- Do this now
Ask the Panchayat Secretary (in a village) or the municipal Bill Collector (in a town) whether widows' and single women's pension applications are being taken now.
Not confirmed
In August 2026 SERP put a new application form on the Cheyutha website, with boxes for widows and single women. But no order or guidelines saying until when, and from whom, applications are taken in this round are published on the SERP website or the government orders site, and nothing official says what to do when no round is open. Ask at the office or the district pension officer (APO).
Sources: 6, 8
- Do this nowIf: My husband has died (widow)If: Village (gram panchayat) / Another town or city (municipality)
If you do not have your husband's death certificate, tell the official who takes your application (in a village, the Panchayat Secretary).
They make a local enquiry and give you a certificate. The death certificate itself must still be obtained and given within three months.
Not confirmed
This is from the 2014 order and SERP's letter of 5 November 2014, which was written about women already on pension. The 2026 form lists the husband's death certificate as mandatory and names nothing in its place. Ask at the office before you apply.
Sources: 1, 5, 6
- Do this nowIf: My husband has died (widow)If: Hyderabad (GHMC area)
If you do not have your husband's death certificate, tell the municipal officials.
They make a local enquiry and give you a certificate. The death certificate itself must still be obtained and given within three months.
Not confirmed
This is from the 2014 order and SERP's letter of 5 November 2014, which was written about women already on pension. The 2026 form lists the husband's death certificate as mandatory and names nothing in its place. Ask at the office before you apply.
Sources: 1, 5, 6
- Do this nowIf: My husband has died (widow)
Give the filled form, your photo and photocopies of the documents to the Panchayat Secretary (in a village) or the Bill Collector (in a town).
Widows must be 18 or older. A widow's pension is given even if someone else in the household already gets a pension.
Not confirmed
The officials named here are from the 2014 order. In 2026 officials enter applications on the Cheyutha website. Ask at the office whom to give the application to in this round.
Sources: 1, 2, 6
- Do this nowIf: I am married but live apart from my husband, he has deserted me, or we are divorced: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)If: Village (gram panchayat)
Give the filled form, your photo and photocopies of the documents to the Panchayat Secretary.
If you are over 65, you are covered under the old-age pension instead of the single women's pension.
Not confirmed
The officials named here are from the 2017 order. In 2026 officials enter applications on the Cheyutha website. Ask at the office whom to give the application to in this round. The 2017 order does not say whether you can get this pension when someone else in your household already gets one; the 2014 order allows a second pension in a household only for widows and disabled people. Ask at the office.
Sources: 3, 6, 1
- Do this nowIf: I am married but live apart from my husband, he has deserted me, or we are divorced: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)If: Another town or city (municipality)
Give the filled form, your photo and photocopies of the documents to the Bill Collector.
If you are over 65, you are covered under the old-age pension instead of the single women's pension.
Not confirmed
The officials named here are from the 2017 order. In 2026 officials enter applications on the Cheyutha website. Ask at the office whom to give the application to in this round. The 2017 order does not say whether you can get this pension when someone else in your household already gets one; the 2014 order allows a second pension in a household only for widows and disabled people. Ask at the office.
Sources: 3, 6, 1
- Do this nowIf: I am married but live apart from my husband, he has deserted me, or we are divorced: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)If: Hyderabad (GHMC area)
Ask at the Tahsildar's office whom to give the filled form, your photo and photocopies of the documents to, and give them there.
If you are over 65, you are covered under the old-age pension instead of the single women's pension.
Not confirmed
The 2017 order has the Village Revenue Officer take applications here and the Tahsildar scrutinise them. The government orders register lists G.O.Ms.No.29 of 19 September 2020 (Law Department) with the title 'The Telangana Abolition of the Posts of Village Revenue Officers Act, 2020 - Publication ordered as Telangana Act No.10 of 2020'. We read only that title, not the Act, and found no later order saying who takes applications now. In 2026 officials enter applications on the Cheyutha website. The 2017 order does not say whether you can get this pension when someone else in your household already gets one; the 2014 order allows a second pension in a household only for widows and disabled people. Ask at the office.
Sources: 3, 6, 1, 16
- Do this nowIf: My husband has died (widow)If: Village (gram panchayat) / Another town or city (municipality)
Wait for the check and the decision.
The Panchayat Secretary or Bill Collector checks your details. The MPDO (in a village) or the Municipal Commissioner (in a town) reviews it and sends it on, and the District Collector gives final approval.
Sources: 1
- Do this nowIf: My husband has died (widow)If: Hyderabad (GHMC area)
Wait for the check and the decision.
The Bill Collector checks your details. The GHMC Deputy Commissioner (in Hyderabad district, the Tahsildar) reviews it and sends it on, and the District Collector gives final approval.
Sources: 1
- Do this nowIf: I am married but live apart from my husband, he has deserted me, or we are divorced: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)If: Village (gram panchayat) / Another town or city (municipality)
Wait for the check and the decision.
The official who took your application checks your details. A Gram Sabha or Ward Sabha is held to identify those eligible. The Tahsildar (in a village) or the Municipal Commissioner (in a town) scrutinises it; where there are no documents, the Tahsildar makes an enquiry to settle how long you have lived apart. The District Collector gives approval.
Sources: 3
- Do this nowIf: I am married but live apart from my husband, he has deserted me, or we are divorced: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)If: Hyderabad (GHMC area)
Wait for the check and the decision.
The official who took your application checks your details. A Ward Sabha is held to identify those eligible. The Tahsildar scrutinises it; where there are no documents, the Tahsildar makes an enquiry to settle how long you have lived apart. The District Collector gives approval.
Sources: 3
- Do this now
On the Cheyutha website, open 'New Sanctions Applicants Search' and look up your application by its application ID or Aadhaar number.
Open the official pageSources: 9
- Do this now
After the Collector's approval, collect your pension card with your photo on it.
The MPDO arranges for it to be given out.
Not confirmed
The pension card is in the 2014 order; the 2017 single women order does not mention a card. Ask at the office whether cards are given now. The order does not say where the card is handed over.
Sources: 1
- Do this now
Collect the pension each month.
It is paid into your bank or post office account; where it is paid out at a pay point, you confirm with your fingerprint or iris. Under the 2019 order the widow's pension and the single women's pension are ₹2,016 a month each. If you are bedridden or your hands are badly affected, the 2014 order lets the Panchayat Secretary or Bill Collector pay you using their own fingerprint or iris, in rare cases that a higher officer clears; ask them.
Not confirmed
₹2,016 is the amount in G.O.Ms.No.34 of 2019, the latest order we could read on an official site; we did not check whether it has changed since. Under the 2014 order the pension is paid between the 1st and 7th of each month. Ask the MPDO office for the current amount and dates.
Sources: 1, 3, 4
- Do this nowIf: My husband has died (widow)
The pension stops if you remarry.
For widows up to 45, the Panchayat Secretary must confirm every year that you have not remarried.
Sources: 1
- Do this nowIf: I am married but live apart from my husband, he has deserted me, or we are divorced: I am over 18 and we have lived apart for more than a year / I have never married, and I am over 30 (in a village) or over 35 (in a town or city)
The pension is stopped if you marry or remarry, get permanent employment or become financially stable.
The MPDO, Municipal Commissioner or Tahsildar checks this every three months.
Sources: 3
If something goes wrong
If it is rejectedIf your application is rejected, ask the MPDO, Municipal Commissioner or Tahsildar's office why.
If your application is rejected, ask the MPDO, Municipal Commissioner or Tahsildar's office why. Your district pension officer's (APO's) phone number is on the Cheyutha website under 'APOs Contact Details'.
District pension officer (APO), SERP · Open the official page
Sources: 1, 3, 11
If it is lateEven if you are eligible, the pension may not start at once.
Even if you are eligible, the pension may not start at once. Eligible people still waiting are listed in the panchayat's 'B register'. When a place falls vacant, the 2014 order looks at age (the oldest first), SC/ST and landless families, with preference to women, especially deserted women, in every category. Check your application status on the website, and call the district APO if it is taking long.
District pension officer (APO), SERP · Open the official page
Sources: 1, 9, 11
AlsoIf your pension stops, open 'Search Pensioner Details' on the Cheyutha website and look yourself up by pension ID or Aadhaar number.
If your pension stops, open 'Search Pensioner Details' on the Cheyutha website and look yourself up by pension ID or Aadhaar number. Then call the district APO.
Cheyutha website: Search Pensioner Details · Open the official page
Sources: 10, 11
AlsoYou can also register a complaint by calling the Rural Development Call Center (toll-free 1800-200-1001).
You can also register a complaint by calling the Rural Development Call Center (toll-free 1800-200-1001). You get a message with a 'Problem ID', and you can follow it under 'Know Your Status' on the call centre's website. The call centre passes the complaint to the officials concerned; they are the ones who resolve it.
Rural Development Call Center · Open the official page
Sources: 12
AlsoIf these do not resolve it, complain on Prajavani, the government's grievance system: online, or at the Prajavani sessions at your District Collectorate.
If these do not resolve it, complain on Prajavani, the government's grievance system: online, or at the Prajavani sessions at your District Collectorate.
Prajavani (the government's grievance system)
Sources: 13
Official websites for this work
- Cheyutha pensions (Telangana) Old age, widow and disability pensions
Related guides
The 16 official pages and papers this guide is written from
- G.O.Ms.No.17, PR&RD (RD.I) Dept., 05-11-2014: Aasara pensions, guidelines and eligibilityPanchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD.I) Department, Government of Telangana, Para 4: II pension amount; III (A) eligibility table, row 3 'Widow' (age 18 and above, husband's death certificate, yearly check on remarriage for widows up to 45); (B) exclusions i–vii; (C) iv one pension per household except disabled and widows; IV vi death certificate or Panchayat Secretary's enquiry, certificate within three months; V–VI verification, the reviewing officers by area, sanction, pension card, A and B registers, v who is considered first; VII biometric payment, iv bedridden pensioners; IX–X disbursal, 1st to 7th of the month. Opened from the portal's GOs menu, 'GO-MS No 17 Aasara Pensions' (05-11-2014) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.23, PR&RD (RD.I) Dept., 25-11-2014: amendment to G.O.Ms.No.17 (income limits, income certificate)Panchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD.I) Department, Government of Telangana, Amendments 1, 2 and 4. Opened from the portal's GOs menu, 'GO MS No 23 - Amendment' (25-11-2014) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.27, PR&RD (RD) Dept., 02-05-2017: "Financial Assistance to Single Women" under the Aasara schemePanchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD) Department, Government of Telangana, Para 2: I (from 1 April 2017); II (i) the two categories of single women, (ii) income limits, (iii) no other social security pension, (iv) over 65 under old-age pension, and discontinuation on remarriage or permanent employment, checked every three months; III (i) documents, (ii)–(x) who receives, Gram/Ward Sabha, Tahsildar's scrutiny and local enquiry, Collector's approval; IV (iv) deletion on death or remarriage; V payment. Opened from the portal's GOs menu, 'GO MS No. 27 Single Women' (02-05-2017) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.34, PR&RD (RD.II) Dept., 28-05-2019: enhancement of Aasara pensionsPanchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD.II) Department, Government of Telangana, Para 3, table, rows 2 (Widow) and 8 (Single Women). Opened from the portal's GOs menu, 'GO Ms.No.34 - Enhancements' (28-05-2019) · read on 30-10-2026
- Lr. No. 05/SERP.SSP/2014, 5-11-2014: Widow pensions, submission of death certificate for existing pensioners, clarificationOffice of the Chief Executive Officer, SERP (SS Wing), Government of Telangana, Last paragraph: local enquiry and certificate by the Panchayat Secretary / VRO / municipal authorities pending the death certificate. Opened from the portal's GOs menu, 'Widow Pension - Submission of Death Certificate' (05-11-2014) · read on 30-10-2026
- Application for sanction of new pension under Cheyutha scheme (English format)Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Telangana, Page 1: 'Pension Type' boxes (Widow, Disabled, Toddy Tapper, Weaver, Dialysis, Filaria, Single Women), photo box, items 4 (proof of age), 10–13; page 2: items 13–14, declaration, document checklist items 1–7. Opened from the portal's menu 'Cheyutha Application Forms', 'Cheyutha Application Form - English Format' (the file is dated 8 August 2026) · read on 30-10-2026
- చేయూత పథకం కింద కొత్త పెన్షన్ మంజూరు దరఖాస్తు (Cheyutha Application Form, Telugu format)Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Telangana, Page 2: items 13 and 14, declaration, checklist. Opened from the portal's menu 'Cheyutha Application Forms', 'Cheyutha Application Form - Telugu Format' (the file is dated 8 August 2026) · read on 30-10-2026
- చేయూత పెన్షన్ పథకం: దరఖాస్తులు డాటా ఎంట్రీ చేయడంలో తీసుకోవాల్సిన జాగ్రత్తలు (Data Entry Instructions)Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Telangana, Points 1, 7 and 8. Opened from the portal's menu 'Cheyutha Application Forms', 'Data Entry Instructions' (the file is dated 8 August 2026) · read on 30-10-2026
- Cheyutha portal: New Applicant Details SearchSociety for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Telangana, Search by 'Application ID / AADHAR ID' or by district, mandal and panchayat · read on 30-10-2026
- Cheyutha portal: Search Pensioner DetailsSociety for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Telangana, Search by 'Pension ID/UID/SADAREM ID' or by district, mandal and panchayat · read on 30-10-2026
- Cheyutha portal: APOs Contact Details (district pension officers)Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), Government of Telangana, District-wise table: APO name, contact number, email · read on 30-10-2026
- Rural Development Call Center: About RDCCDepartment of Rural Development, Government of Telangana, Page header ('Reach Us' number), the list of RD sites (Aasara, SADAREM) and the three purposes of the call centre · read on 30-10-2026
- Prajavani at Praja Bhavan, effective Grievance Redressal SystemCentre for Good Governance, Government of Telangana, Project brief; roll-out table (Hyderabad District Collectorate: Monday sessions) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.75, PR&RD (RD) Dept., 08-09-2015: amendment to G.O.Ms.No.17 (proof of age)Panchayat Raj and Rural Development (RD) Department, Government of Telangana, Para 2, amendment table. Opened from the portal's GOs menu, 'GO MS No 75 - Amendment' (08-09-2015) · read on 29-10-2026
- 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 (The Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3(ii), No. 962), Para (5) (in fields the notification does not name, an OCI cardholder has the same rights as a foreigner) and Explanation (1) (an OCI cardholder is a foreign national, not an Indian citizen) (04-03-2021) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.29, 19.09.2020: ACTS - STATE - The Telangana Abolition of the Posts of Village Revenue Officers Act, 2020 - Publication ordered as Telangana Act No.10 of 2020Law (E) Department, Government of Telangana (Telangana G.O.I.R.), The entry in the register of MS orders of 2020 only (number, date, department, title), from a copy of the register saved on 5 November 2026. The order and the Act themselves were not read (19-09-2020) · read on 10-11-2026