In a move to streamline welfare distribution, the Maharashtra government has slashed the monthly stipend for eight lakh women under its flagship Mukhya Mantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, citing overlap with another financial assistance scheme — the Namo Shetkari Mahasanman Nidhi (NSMN). As per current guidelines, beneficiaries of the Ladki Bahin scheme can receive aid from other government programs. However, the total monthly assistance must not exceed ₹1,500. Since these women already receive ₹1,000 under the NSMN — a scheme aimed at supporting farmers — their Ladki Bahin stipend has been reduced from ₹1,500 to ₹500.
The decision follows a broader government initiative to verify and clean up the list of beneficiaries, ensuring that only eligible women receive support. The scheme, launched to provide financial independence to women aged 21-60 years, saw an overwhelming response with over 26.3 million applications by October. After rigorous scrutiny and multiple rounds of verification, the final tally of verified beneficiaries was trimmed to 24.6 million by March.
“There has been an ongoing scrutiny. First to scan the applications that were sent by the districts to the state headquarters. And then to re-scrutinise the eligible cases,” a government official told The Times of India.
Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis emphasized that the objective isn’t to alter the eligibility criteria or reduce funding, but to ensure transparency and fairness. “We're not changing criteria or funding, just ensuring only eligible ones get the stipend,” he said, adding that he expects the number of beneficiaries to further reduce by 1 to 1.5 million post-verification. This recalibration aims to better target government support while maintaining fiscal discipline