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Around 60 lakh beneficiaries likely to be removed from Ladki Bahin list

Jan 07, 2025 08:56 AM IST

Maharashtra's WCD department will link beneficiary data to cut 25% from the Ladki Bahin scheme, saving ₹900 crore monthly amid financial strain.

MUMBAI: The state government’s women and child development (WCD) department has started the process of linking the data of beneficiaries collected for the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana with those of all other existing schemes, to weed out a sizeable chunk of payees and relieve the government of mounting financial pressures. Through this action, at least 25% of the 2.46 crore beneficiaries are expected to be removed, which will help the government save 900 crore of 3690 crore spent every month on the scheme.

The state government’s women and child development (WCD) department has started the process of linking the data of beneficiaries collected for the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana. ((PIC FOR REPRESENTATION))
The state government’s women and child development (WCD) department has started the process of linking the data of beneficiaries collected for the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana. ((PIC FOR REPRESENTATION))

Apart from those paying income tax, the government will sift out those beneficiaries that are also receiving benefits from schemes like Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yojana (a pension scheme for destitute women) under which over 25 lakh women get 1500 a month, the Namo Shetkari Samman Yojana (cash benefit announced in 2019 at the Centre under PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi and replicated by the state) under which 94 lakh beneficiaries get 1000 a month. Other government schemes through which farmers get cash benefits for purchasing farm equipment will also be linked with the Ladki Bahin list.

On November 25, 2024, HT was the first to report that a day after the Mahayuti’s landslide win in the Maharashtra assembly election on November 23, propelled by the Ladki Bahin Yojana, bureaucrats were looking to renegotiate the scheme’s fine print. Subsequently, soon after CM Devendra Fadnavis assumed office, he announced that the list of beneficiaries would be trimmed, as many undeserving candidates had crept in.

The state government has already distributed 21,600 crore through six instalments since the scheme was launched on July 1, 2024.

“We have asked for data from all the state departments that have been implementing the cash benefit schemes. There are 18.18 lakh women beneficiaries in Namo Shetkari Samman Yojana, while the direct benefit transfer (DBT) scheme, under which farmers get cash grant for equipment, has 1.71 lakh women beneficiaries (of the 10.8 lakh total). 25 lakh destitute women are benefitted by the Sanjay Gandhi pension scheme,” said an official in the know from the WCD department.

The department has also asked for data from the transport department to zero in on the households owning four wheelers to weed out women from these homes who feature on the list. “Apart from this, the income tax list of tax payers will help us to establish the income of these households. The E-KYC of all the beneficiary accounts of scheme will help us in getting the details related to the financial status of the family. This will be completed in a month,” added the official from WCD department.

The officer said, the act of pruning the list was in keeping with the government resolutions issued by the department on June 28 and July 3 last year, where “we had clearly stated that the beneficiary getting cash benefit of other schemes will be eligible for a composite monthly pay out of 1500”. Offering an example, the officer said, “The Namo Samman beneficiaries who already get 1000 a month will get only 500 in the Ladki Bahin scheme.”

An officer from the finance department said, after close scrutiny and pruning, the list will come down to around 1.90 crore beneficiaries. The government is also considering the recovery the excess amount already paid to those who will be deemed ineligible beneficiaries.

“We took an undertaking from beneficiaries during submissions stating they would not reap the benefit from two schemes. If they fail to repay on their own, action would be initiated as mentioned in the undertaking,” the official from the finance department said.

With the present number of beneficiaries, the annual burden on the state exchequer is 42, 000 crore. The Mahayuti, in its election manifesto, had announced an increase of the pay out to 2100 each month once elected to the power. The Fadnavis government has now announced that this will be effective from the new financial year beginning April 1, 2025. With this hike, the state will stand to spend around 60,000 crore if the list is not pruned.

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