The Maharashtra government introduced the “Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana” initiative last Saturday, August 17, 2024, wherein monthly assistance of Rs 1,500 to women and girls whose families have an annual income below Rs 2.5 lakh. The scheme is aimed at one crore eligible women between the ages of 21 and 65 years. The scheme, which was announced in the supplementary budget, is expected to cost the State exchequer ₹46,000 crore annually. The cut-off date to apply for the scheme is August 31, 2024.
Here are the top features:
> The Maharashtra scheme has been incorporated into the supplementary budget by Deputy CM and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar.
> Women residents of Maharashtra can apply online for the scheme.
> The applicant should be a permanent resident of Maharashtra, with an age ranging from 21 to 65 years.
> Eligibility extends to all married, unmarried, abandoned, divorced, and destitute women.
> It is required that the applicant holds a bank account under their name in any bank, and their family income does not exceed Rs 2.5 lakh.
Disqualification
> Individuals whose total family income exceeds Rs. 2.50 lakh annually and have a family member who pays income tax.
> Women whose family members are employed as regular or permanent workers in Government Departments, Undertakings, Boards, the Government of India, or local bodies of State Governments, or receiving pension post-retirement, will not be eligible.
> Outsourced employees, voluntary workers, and contract workers earning up to Rs. 2.50 lakh are not eligible.
> Women who have a direct familial connection to a current or former Member of Parliament (MP) or Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) will not be considered for the funds.
> Women who are related to an individual serving as Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Director, or Member of the Board or Corporation or Undertaking affiliated with the Government of India or a State Government.
> Additionally, women who possess ownership of a four-wheeler (excluding tractors) that is officially registered under the name of their family members.
How to open a Mukhyamantri Ladki Bahin Yojana account?
For offline registration, women can in touch with Anganwadi Sevak/Supervisor/Chief Sevak/Setu Suvidha Kendra/Gram Sevak/Group Resource Person (CRP)/ASHA Sevak/Ward Officer/CMM (City Mission Manager)/Mnpa Balwadi Sevak/Help Room Head/ Your Sarkar Seva Kendra will have online/offline application facility available. No fee will be charged for this application.
Applicant’s name, date of birth, address should be filled correctly as per Aadhaar card. Fill the bank details and mobile number correctly.
Your Sarkar Seva Kendra will have online/offline application facility available.
No fee will be charged for this application.
For online registration, applicants can login through mobile application Nari Shakti Doot App. The app is compatible with both Android and iOS devices and can be easily accessed through the respective platforms – the Play Store for Android users and the App Store for iOS users. The primary function of this application is to provide online registration services for the Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana.
Documents needed for registration
Aadhaar Card, Identity Card or Certificate, Bank Account, Caste Certificate, Residence Certificate, Age Proof, Ration Card, Passport Size Photograph, Income Proof [Yellow and orange ration card holders no need of income proof], Domicile certificate, Birth Certificate, Voter ID.
Similar schemes in other states
Maharashtra is one of the seven states with direct benefit transfer (DBT) schemes targeting women, wherein they receive monthly financial assistance from the government.
The other States that have introduced similar schemes include West Bengal, Delhi, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh. However, Telangana and Punjab are still pending on delivering their commitment of monthly cash transfers to women, as promised during the pre-election period.
Delhi’s Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana, introduced in the Budget 2024 by the AAP government, aims to provide a monthly cash transfer of Rs 1,000 to women aged 18 and above. With a budget allocation of Rs 2,000 crore, this scheme is aimed at benefiting 50 lakh women in the city. According to the updated electoral roll of Delhi, there are a total of 67,30,371 female voters in the national capital.
Madhya Pradesh’s Mukhyamantri Ladli Behna Yojana, which was introduced in anticipation of the state assembly elections in March 2023 under the leadership of the then Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, aims to provide financial support to women belonging to families with an income limit of Rs 2.5 lakh. Initially offering Rs 1,000 monthly, the current Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has boosted the disbursement to Rs 1,250 per month and has committed to gradually increasing it to Rs 3,000. Presently, approximately 1.29 crore women have enrolled for the program, with the State government earmarking a substantial sum of Rs 18,984 crores for the scheme in the fiscal year 2024-25.
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee introduced the Lakshmir Bhandar programme in February 2021 with the purpose of offering financial support to women aged between 25 to 60 years. This initiative entails providing a monthly stipend to eligible women, where individuals from the SC/ST backgrounds receive Rs 1,200 per month, and those from other categories are entitled to Rs 1,000 monthly.
Participation in the scheme necessitates enrollment in the State government’s ‘Swasthyasathi’ program. Currently benefitting 2.11 crore recipients, the State administration allocated Rs 10,101.87 crore for the scheme in 2023-24, with a projected annual budget of Rs 12,000 crore. Moreover, the Lakshmir Bhandar programme facilitates a seamless transition for beneficiaries to the old age pension scheme upon reaching 60 years, ensuring they continue to receive the allocated amount.
Jharkhand launched the ‘Mukhyamantri Maiya Samman Yojana’ on August 18, 2024, a day before Raksha Bandhan. The scheme benefits women aged 21 to 50 with a family income below Rs 3 lakh annually by providing Rs 1,000 monthly via Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). The initiative aims to assist 48 lakh women across the state, with the budget for the scheme remaining undisclosed. In a similar move to Maharashtra, Chief Minister Hemant Soren initiated the scheme and personally distributed the first payment to 81,000 eligible women at the launch event in Pakur.
Karnataka introduced the ‘Gruha Lakshmi scheme’ shortly after the Congress government, led by Siddaramiah, took office. This scheme ensures women heading households in the state receive Rs 2000 monthly support. With an annual allocation of Rs 32,000 crore, the program attracted 1.33 crore enrollees at its inception. The Congress party is looking to leverage the success of the five guarantees it established in the previous 10 months to promote the Gruha Lakshmi scheme.
Tamil Nadu’s Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam was initiated by Chief Minister M K Stalin of Tamil Nadu on September 15, 2023. This scheme aims to empower women above the age of 21 who are identified as the heads of their households by providing them with a monthly ‘right to basic income’ of Rs 1,000 initially, which has later been augmented to Rs 1200. To be eligible for this program, the women leading the households should not have a family income exceeding Rs 2.5 lakh per year, possess less than five acres of wetland or less than ten acres of dryland, and consume less than 3,600 units of electricity annually for domestic purposes.
There is no requirement for income certificates or land records during the application process. If a male is mentioned as the head of the family, his wife will also be eligible for the scheme. In households where there are two or more women above 21 years old, they can designate one as the head to receive the benefits.
Additionally, unmarried single women, widows, and transgender individuals heading families are also eligible for this program. Families receiving pension for differently-abled members were later added to those eligible to apply. Elected representatives from panchayat to parliament (except municipal council ward members) are ineligible to apply.