Nearly 26.34 lakh beneficiaries declared ineligible under Ladki Bahin Yojana; Maha govt suspends benefit till further scrutiny

Mumbai: Maharashtra Minister of Women and Child Welfare Aditi Tatkare said that out of the 2.52 crore beneficiaries of the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, which was implemented ahead of the Assembly elections, as many as 26.34 lakh women were availing monthly aid of Rs 1,500 despite being ineligible for it. The government has temporarily suspended their monthly aid till further scrutiny.

Furthermore, the department has also found that 14,298 men have also taken benefits under the scheme.

Sources in the department have estimated that the loss due to ineligible beneficiaries availing the monthly benefit is likely to be around Rs 4,800 crore till date.

Tatkare in her post on X on Sunday night said, “It has been found that some beneficiaries were availing benefits of multiple schemes, some families had more than two beneficiaries, and in some cases, men had applied for the scheme.

“Based on this information, starting from June 2025, the benefits for these 26.34 lakh applicants have been temporarily suspended. Additionally, the government has disbursed the financial aid of Rs 1,500 for the month of June to approximately 2.25 crore eligible beneficiaries of the Ladki Bahin Yojana.

“The information regarding the 26.34 lakh beneficiaries whose benefits have been temporarily suspended will be verified by the respective District Collectors, and the benefits for those found eligible will be resumed by the government.”

She further added, “Regarding the action to be taken against fraudulent beneficiaries who have misled the government and availed benefits through improper means, a suitable decision will be taken at the government level after discussions with the Honorable Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis Saheb, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde Saheb, and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit dada Pawar.”

The department sources said that it had sought information from various other departments of the government to identify all the eligible applications under this scheme.

According to the information provided by the Information and Technology Department, 26.34 lakh beneficiaries have been found to be ineligible and their aid has been suspended temporarily till further scrutiny.

Sources said that about five lakh beneficiaries under the Ladki Bahin Yojana had been earlier declared ineligible during the scrutiny when they were found taking benefits under other schemes while some have crossed the age limit.

Of the five lakh beneficiaries, 30,000 beneficiaries of the Sanjay Gandhi Niradhar Yojana, 1.10 lakh women above 65 years of age and 1.60 lakh beneficiaries of the Namoshakti Yojana, had already been declared ineligible.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde at the party rally held late on Sunday night in Ratnagiri district said that the government will not close down the Ladki Bahin Yojana, reiterating the government’s commitment to provide monthly benefit of Rs 1,500 to eligible women beneficiaries.

Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar has allocated a whopping Rs 36,000 crore for the implementation of the Ladki Bahin Yojana during his annual budget for 2025-26.

IANS