Maharashtra Government Removes 81 Lakh Beneficiaries from Women's Welfare Scheme

Significant Changes in Maharashtra's Women's Welfare Initiative

Aditi Tatkare, the Minister for Women and Child Development in Maharashtra, announced that following an extensive e-KYC verification process, approximately 81 lakh beneficiaries have been removed from the state's Chief Minister's Majhi Ladki Bhagini scheme. Speaking to reporters in Mumbai, she emphasized that this verification was essential to systematically eliminate ineligible beneficiaries, including taxpayers and families of government employees.

Tatkare provided insights into the scheme's statistics, revealing that initially, 2.63 crore individuals registered, with 2.47 crore women qualifying for monthly financial assistance. However, as the verification process commenced, the number of beneficiaries began to decline. She noted that around 62 lakh women failed to complete the e-KYC process despite an extension, leading to their removal from the scheme.

The minister further explained that nearly 16 lakh beneficiaries were found to have an annual family income exceeding ₹2.5 lakh, while 4.42 lakh women were disqualified due to having a family member employed in government. Investigations also uncovered that some men and even government employees had registered for the scheme and benefited from it. The government has started recovering funds from these employees, which are being deposited into the state treasury.

Meanwhile, opposition parties have launched a fierce critique of the government's implementation of the scheme. Harshvardhan Sapkal, president of the Maharashtra Congress unit, accused the government of overspending ₹3,541 crore beyond the approved budget for the scheme without proper accounting. He questioned the significant expenditure on this initiative while cutting budgets for essential programs like housing and sanitation.

Congress MP Varsha Gaikwad and representatives from the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar) have also raised concerns about the government's intentions. The opposition alleges that benefits were granted to women by overlooking regulations to secure votes ahead of the assembly elections, only to later disqualify them post-election. Anil Shidore, spokesperson for the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, described the situation as troubling, asserting that spending thousands of crores on ineligible beneficiaries constitutes a misuse of public funds.