In a significant move, the Rekha Gupta-led Delhi government on Monday finalised the roll-out plan for Mahila Samriddhi Yojana, a poll pledge during the Assembly elections, under which all eligible women were promised Rs 2,500 per month. The scheme has been renamed ‘Delhi Lakshmi Yojana’, and the city government aims to launch the flagship scheme next month, during the festival of Raksha Bandhan.
“Under this scheme, eligible women aged 21 to 60 will receive financial assistance of ₹2,500 per month. Eligibility criteria for the scheme have also been established,” said an official government statement. The decision to implement the scheme was taken at a high-level review meeting at the Delhi Secretariat on Monday.
The Chief Minister issued directives to officials to ensure that the scheme's benefits reach eligible women in a transparent, simple, and timely manner, and that no administrative hurdles impede its implementation. CM Rekha Gupta reiterated her government’s resolve to empower women, stating that it was a cornerstone of ‘Viksit Bharat’ as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
She said that the Modi government’s constant focus on making women-led development the most effective vehicle for the nation's progress will also remain the driving force of her government, and the 'Delhi Lakshmi Yojana’ will help ensure that women live a dignified and self-reliant life.
The Chief Minister instructed officials to ensure strict adherence to all scheme guidelines so that benefits reach only genuinely eligible beneficiaries. According to the devised guidelines, the scheme's benefits would be available only to women who or whose families have been residents of Delhi for at least 10 years.
Neither the beneficiary nor any family member should have a criminal record. "Within a family, only the eldest woman (based on age) will be eligible, and the benefit will be extended to only one woman per family. Additionally, the family's annual income must not exceed ₹2.5 lakh," said an official release.
Women already receiving benefits from any government pension or other regular financial assistance scheme will not be eligible for this scheme. Similarly, women belonging to families that own a four-wheeled vehicle will not be eligible for the scheme's benefits.
“We believe that when the women of a household are economically strong, it imparts new momentum to the progress of the family, society, and the nation alike,” the Chief Minister said.