Despite the stand that the state will not go for thorough scrutiny and only those cases will go for the verification where complaints have been made, the state government has started a large-scale verification drive of the beneficiaries under the Ladki Bahin Scheme that is expected to eliminate a significant number of women from the list.
The anganwadi sevikas have been asked to check the names that appear on the Aadhar card and the bank accounts, besides the annual income proofs, proofs of the domicile status, apart from the four-wheel vehicles and the government jobs. The Anganwadi sevikas will also check the documents of the beneficiaries as well as their financial status.
The financial benefit of Rs1,500 per month will be stopped if a beneficiary’s family owns a four-wheeler or a member from the family is an employee of the government, or they are availing financial assistance under other schemes such as the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yojana, said an official from the government.
Of the approximately 2.46 crore beneficiaries, the state deleted the names of around 5 lakh last month when it came to notice that 1.5 lakh of them were above the age limit of 65 years. Around 2 lakh beneficiaries were getting financial assistance under the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yojana, which offers Rs1,500 a month. The state has already clarified that the Rs1,000 stipend per month under Namo Kisan Samman Yojana will be clubbed with the Ladki Bahin scheme, and those who qualify for both will get Rs5,00 from the Ladki Bahin scheme.
Besides, the state received 5,000 applications to remove the names of those beneficiaries who were not domiciled in the state or whose income level had changed.
The government, according to sources, wanted a significant number of beneficiaries to be reduced, given the financial strain coupled with the huge debt burden projected to be Rs9.32 lakh crore by the end of the next financial year, 2025-26.
