E-Paper
Karnataka: Scheme offering women ₹2K aid postponed over glitches
Shivakumar also pointed out there were complaints against the agencies responsible for receiving applications for government schemes for accepting money from applicants
Bengaluru: Deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar has announced a temporary suspension of the Gruha Lakshmi scheme to address the technical glitches and other issues faced by applicants. The Gruha Lakshmi scheme was one among the party’s poll guarantees, it will provide ₹2,000 per month to women heads of households across the state.
Shivakumar said that he had consulted with chief minister Siddaramaiah before making the decision to pause the implementation of the scheme. Emphasising the importance of simplifying the process and ensuring a corruption-free environment, he said the process of applying for the scheme will be reworked.
“I held a discussion with chief minister and put the Gruha Lakhmi scheme on hold as we want the process to be simpler. The scheme must be corruption-free and any individual or organisation taking money from beneficiaries will be strictly dealt with,” Shivakumar said.
Shivakumar also pointed out there were complaints against the agencies responsible for receiving applications for government schemes for accepting money from applicants. “Complaints have been heard that some individuals and some agencies are getting money from the public to apply for Gruha Jyoti Yojana. My appeal to people is that you don’t have to bribe anyone to apply for Gruha Jyoti Yojana. You can apply through your mobile. Strict action will be taken against those who are getting money from the public,” tweeted the Deputy CM.
The energy department released a statement warning officials at centres such as Bangalore One, Karnataka One, and others against demanding additional fees for registrations. Furthermore, Bescom officials highlighted the circulation of deceptive mobile applications that mislead people.
To address issues around various poll promises, the Deputy CM organised a meeting with women and child development Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar, revenue minister Krishna Byre Gowda, and rural development and panchayat raj minister Priyank Kharge on Friday.
Following the meeting, Hebbalkar announced that an application would be utilized for receiving applications under the ‘Gruha Lakshmi’ scheme .The scheme guarantees a monthly sum of ₹ 2,000 for women who are heads of households and hold BPL, APL, and Antyodaya cards. Women or their husbands who pay income tax or claim GST returns are not eligible for the scheme.
“As the number of applicants for the scheme has increased, the server has been experiencing overload. We have developed an application, which will be presented to the CM during the cabinet meeting on Wednesday. After thorough discussion, a decision will be made regarding the scheme,” said Hebbalkar.
Last week, women and child Development minister Laxmi Hebbalkar, whose department oversees the scheme’s rollout, had promised to unveil the application form soon, with the software currently being developed. However, on Wednesday, PWD Minister Satish Jarkiholi made an unusual claim that the central government had “hacked” the app for the scheme, he later retracted those comments.
The government had previously announced that the application window would be open from June 15 to July 15, with the scheme’s official launch scheduled for August 15.
Reacting to the delay in implementing the poll promises BJP MLA Ashwath Narayan, said, “All four schemes ensured by the government are not fulfilled... This government is anti-people”
Meanwhile, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) working president Saleem Ahmed on Saturday stated that the Union government itself would be directly responsible if the launch of ‘Anna Bhagya’ scheme of giving 10 kg rice per month to each member of BPL families is delayed.
“Though the state government is ready to pay the price of rice, the Centre is playing politics, and not giving rice. BJP government at the Centre is doing so with a fear of setback in upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The Centre itself will be directly responsible if the implementation of ‘Anna Bhagya’ scheme gets delayed,” he said.
“Food Corporation of India had agreed to supply rice, but it changed the stand, though the state government is ready to pay. Food & civil supplies minister K H Muniyappa was made to wait for three days before meeting Union minister Piyush Goyal,” he added.
