Maha’s Ladki Bahin Yojana faces Backlash over eligibility criteria | Fusion - WeRIndia

Starting February 4, the Maharashtra government is set to review women beneficiaries of its flagship Ladki Bahin Yojana.

It is set to disqualify those who own a four-wheeler, despite meeting other requirements.

The scheme, aimed at empowering women, offers a monthly allowance of ₹1,500 to women up to the age of 65, with an annual family income of less than ₹2.5 lakh.

Additionally, the scheme stipulates that the woman must not have any government employee in her family and should not be receiving benefits from any other government scheme.

However, the decision to remove women from the scheme based on vehicle ownership has sparked intense criticism.

According to government officials, over 21 lakh women in Pune alone are benefiting from the scheme, and some of these beneficiaries may be disqualified if they own a four-wheeler.

The government’s justification is based on the eligibility criteria, which state that owning a four-wheeler disqualifies one from receiving the benefit.

This move has faced strong opposition from political parties like Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Leaders have expressed outrage, calling the government’s actions “insulting” to women and accusing it of effectively betraying them. Some of them pointed out that some women who own cars bought them before the COVID-19 pandemic when they were employed.

Besides, they argued that, despite no longer having a job, these women are being unfairly penalized for circumstances beyond their control, such as job loss and financial instability during the pandemic.

Some others emphasized that the government would not investigate individual cases, but would instead rely on lists provided by the Regional Transport Office to identify those who own a four-wheeler.

They said that there would be no fines or further investigation, but women found with a four-wheeler would simply be removed from the scheme.

The controversy surrounding this issue has led some to accuse the ruling BJP-led Mahayuti government of using the Ladki Bahin scheme to secure votes during the recent Assembly elections.

They claim that the government is now backtracking on its promises by withdrawing benefits from vulnerable women.

Some leaders from NCP argued that the disqualification was a clear example of how the government is “cheating” women, many of whom are still struggling with the economic fallout from the pandemic.

As the government moves forward with its decision, the backlash continues to grow, with critics pointing out that the scheme, which was intended to help women, may now be causing them even greater hardship.

Image Credit: Lok sangharsh Morcha Jalgaon Maharashtra, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Image Reference: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Struggle_with_pride_and_culture_,_tribal_Women_from_Maharashtra_in_Delhi_farmers_andolan_singhu_border_Delhi_18_Jan_2021.jpg