Kannur: In what could be a first, a Catholic church in Kannur’s Taliparamba municipality has launched a welfare pension scheme, aimed at lending a helping hand to the poor, including those confined to bed, cancer patients, and single parents of children with disabilities.

Matching the Kerala government’s social welfare pension, St Mary’s Forane Church said it will give ₹2,000 at the start of every month to at least 100 families —  50 of them from the Catholic Church and another 50 families, irrespective of their religion. “Our theme is that no one is an outsider. Everyone is our own, ‘swantham',” said Fr Mathew Asariparambil, vicar of the church.

The church registered the charity initiative under the name Swantham Charitable Society to disburse the pension. Those financially struggling to buy medicines and food, and those who require full-time care, are being given priority, he said.

The parish’s initiative comes a month after the government increased the social welfare pension to ₹2,000 from ₹1,600 and declared the state free of extreme poverty. The parish received around 1,000 applications. “Our scheme complements the government’s welfare measures, and those receiving government pensions will still be eligible for the pension from our parish,” said the vicar.

In the first phase, starting November 30, 25 deserving families from St Mary’s Church are being given ₹2,000. In the second phase, starting January, 25 families from seven Catholic churches around the forane church would get the pension. In the third phase, which will be launched before March 2026, 50 families, irrespective of their religion, from the forane church’s jurisdiction will get the welfare pension, said Fr Asariparambil.

“We are hand-delivering the pension for December because we have not got the beneficiaries’ bank account details. From January, we will be crediting the pension to their accounts before the fifth of every month,” said Fr Asariparambil.

St Mary’s Forane Church is the administrative headquarters of the Syro-Malabar Church in Taliparamba taluk. The parish hit upon this idea of giving pensions when it distributed grocery kits to its parishioners during Onam. “We have around 700 families in the parish. By and large, they are well-off. But while distributing the Onam kit, I came across several families struggling to buy medicines and food,” he said.

A single mother, who may have a scooter but also has a child with physical or intellectual disability; a family financially broke but dignified to ask for help; those working in a low-paying workshop or textile shop; those struggling with long-term illness, and those without their own house — all such people have been included in the scheme.

The vicar said that when he presented the idea of a monthly pension before the parishioners, all of them agreed. They formed a collective to go through the application and shortlist the beneficiaries. Then 15 members were picked from the collective to form a committee to run the Swantham Pension Scheme.

The committee members would pitch in with ₹2,000 every month for 15 families. Other willing benefactors may contribute ₹1,000 each. In the third source of funding, the parishioners are expected to donate a lump sum amount during special occasions such as weddings, birthdays, and baptisms, he said.

Five years ago, St Mary’s Church bought two acres and built 18 houses for the homeless parishioners. The ownership of the houses remains with the church, but the beneficiaries could live there rent-free for as long as they want. Some of the residents are beneficiaries of the pension scheme. “The scheme is not to replace the state pension but to ensure there is continuous support and no one has to struggle for the basics. Let the rich help the poor,” he said.