Ahead of the upcoming state elections in November, the state government has approved a scheme to provide household utensils worth ₹10,000 to around 50,000 domestic workers registered with the Domestic Workers Welfare Board.
As of July 31, 37,444 domestic workers had registered, with an estimated 18,000 more joining in August. Nashik leads with 15,000 registrations, and camps for distributing utensils have already begun at the district level, with Pune being the next location. However, the scheme has faced criticism. Uday Bhat, founder-president of Sarva Shramik Sanghatana, highlighted that domestic workers need to register with the board annually, with the fee recently reduced from ₹100 to ₹12. He argued that the welfare board offers limited benefits, making registration unattractive.
Criticizing the utensils scheme, Bhat noted that many workers already own utensils, and suggested the government transfer money directly to the workers’ accounts, giving them the freedom to use it as needed. Previously, the government had announced a one-time payment of ₹10,000 for workers over the age of 55, though this too has drawn mixed reactions.