The BJP government has renamed the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme introduced during the Trinamool Congress regime as the Annapurna Yojana and doubled the monthly financial assistance.
Under the Trinamool government, eligible women received Rs 1,500 per month through the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme. Under the BJP government, the scheme has been renamed and the amount has been increased.
On July 1, the Chief Minister handed over certificates under the Annapurna Yojana to five women from North 24 Parganas, Kolkata, Howrah and Hooghly at a programme held at Netaji Indoor Stadium.
The event was attended by other ministers as well as the Chief Secretary.
The Chief Minister said that not every woman who received benefits under the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme would automatically be eligible for the Annapurna Yojana.
He also outlined the conditions being followed while determining eligibility under the new scheme.
According to the Chief Minister, a verification of the Lakshmi Bhandar beneficiary list uncovered significant irregularities.
He said that financial assistance under the scheme had reached the bank accounts of nearly 2 crore beneficiaries. However, after a survey and verification exercise, questions were raised over the eligibility of around 27 lakh women.
It was claimed that their names did not appear on the voter list and that they were not Indian citizens.
The Chief Minister said it had been made clear that non-Indian citizens could not receive government financial assistance.
He said the identity, citizenship status and voter list records of beneficiaries had therefore been verified. Following the exercise, it was decided to remove the names of those where discrepancies were found.
At the same time, he added, "We have decided to continue this allowance for those who applied to the tribunal until the tribunal declares them cancelled."
The Chief Minister also questioned how men had received money under the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme, which was introduced specifically for women during the Trinamool Congress government.
