Maharashtra Girls' Scheme: Over 14,000 Men Identified as Participants; 500,000 Questionable Cases Discovered
In Maharashtra, the Women and Child Development (WCD) Department, in collaboration with the Information Technology Department, is addressing fraud in the Ladki Bahin Yojana, a scheme that provides financial support to low-income women.
The revelation of approximately 797,000 cases where women were third family members benefitting from the scheme, resulting in an additional expenditure of ₹1,196 crore, has led to a temporary suspension of payments for over 26.34 lakh ineligible beneficiaries, including more than 14,000 men who fraudulently enrolled.
District collectors are currently verifying the eligibility of these suspended beneficiaries. The WCD Department has also coordinated with multiple government departments to cross-verify applications submitted under the scheme, aiming to detect irregularities and confirm the rightful recipients are economically disadvantaged women within the scheme's specified criteria.
The government is committed to recovering funds released wrongfully to ineligible applicants, including men who received benefits by falsifying their gender. If beneficiaries do not cooperate in refunding the money, strict legal actions are planned to hold them accountable.
Following these revelations, the government announced adoption of more stringent verification processes for future disbursements. The scheme will resume for eligible women only after rigorous scrutiny, highlighting a commitment to eliminating fraud and restoring public trust.
Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has emphasized the exclusivity of the scheme for women, reinforcing the government's resolve to curb financial irregularities by recovering misappropriated funds. The scheme, launched in August 2024, will continue after verification but with stricter measures in place.
The department is also collaborating with the income tax department to confirm income eligibility for the Ladki Bahin Yojana, as only women with an annual income of up to ₹2.5 lakh qualify for the scheme. The online application process for the Ladki Bahin Yojana is being blamed for the high number of ineligible beneficiaries.
Officials have acknowledged the shocking number of ineligible beneficiaries in the Ladki Bahin Yojana, with around 500,000 cases identified, including women from families with four-wheelers and those over the eligible age limit.
The Maharashtra government's Ladki Bahin Yojana offers ₹1,500 monthly to low-income women, currently supporting 24.1 million beneficiaries and spending ₹3,700 crore. The government is determined to eliminate fraud in the Ladki Bahin Yojana and has vowed to take strict measures against those who misled the government in the scheme.
- Amidst the ongoing investigation, the Finance Department is being requested to allocate funds for recovering misappropriated funds from ineligible beneficiaries of the Ladki Bahin Yojana.
- The General-News section recently reported a controversy in the election campaign funding, suggesting a link between some political parties and sports personalities.
- In a joint initiative between the WCD Department and the Crime and Justice Department, stricter penalties are being proposed for those found guilty of fraudulently enrolling in the Ladki Bahin Yojana.
