Satisfying one of the BJP's main election promises, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Saturday sanctioned a new program under the Mahila Samriddhi Yojana to provide financial assistance of ₹2,500 a month to qualified women. ₹5,100 crore has been allocated to the scheme this financial year.
The decision was officially cleared in a Cabinet meeting chaired by CM Gupta and subsequently declared by BJP National President J.P. Nadda at an International Women's Day celebration at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
"I welcome PM Modi and CM Rekha Gupta that prior to her arrival here, her Cabinet cleared the ₹2,500 per month Mahila Samriddhi Yojana for Delhi women," Nadda declared.
Highlighting the BJP’s commitment to women-led progress, Nadda emphasized Prime Minister Modi’s vision for empowering women and praised CM Gupta’s measures to bolster women’s safety in Delhi. These include an increased number of CCTV cameras, the expansion of Pink PCR vans staffed by women officers, the addition of more pink toilets, and the establishment of one-stop centers where women can file complaints and seek legal support.
Though details about eligibility are still to be announced, sources say the scheme is likely to cover about 15-20 lakh women between 18 and 60 years of age, especially from families with an income of up to ₹3 lakh per annum, with special focus on those below the poverty line (BPL).
As per the draft criteria, applicants should have been residing in Delhi for a minimum of five years and have a bank account that is Aadhaar-linked. Furthermore, beneficiaries of the Mahila Samriddhi Yojana should not be covered under any other government financial aid scheme, including a widow pension scheme.
Beneficiaries will have to register online with a strong multi-level verification procedure to avoid counterfeit claims, such as the DBT system in the Union government.
In the course of delivering his speech, Nadda also attacked AAP government and party leader Arvind Kejriwal over the latter describing CM Gupta as a "temp CM."
PM Modi has awarded Delhi not a temporary but a tikao (long-lasting) CM," he said. He also accused AAP of ill-treating a woman MP and pointed to an episode where an AAP MLA allegedly released his dog on his wife. Nadda also targeted Congress, contending that the party had also neglected women-led development in the same manner.
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