Ladki Bahin Yojana: Maharashtra shuts millions of accounts over e-KYC gaps

Nearly 6.8 million beneficiary accounts under Maharashtra’s flagship Ladki Bahin Yojana have been closed after failing to complete mandatory electronic verification, significantly reducing the number of active recipients, officials have said.

The scheme, which provides a monthly payment of Rs 1,500 to women from economically weaker backgrounds, initially covered around 24.3 million beneficiaries. Following the recent verification drive, the number of active accounts has dropped to approximately 17.5 million.

The deadline for completing the e-KYC process expired on 31 March but has now been extended until 30 April. Officials indicated that some of the closed accounts may be reinstated if beneficiaries complete the verification within the revised timeframe.

Authorities launched the verification exercise after receiving complaints that ineligible individuals, including men and government employees, had been receiving benefits under the programme.

Since its introduction, the e-KYC requirement has been extended several times, with repeated efforts to ensure that only eligible recipients remain enrolled.

The state government currently spends around Rs 3,700 crore each month on the scheme. With the reduction in active beneficiaries, the overall expenditure is expected to be revised. Budgetary allocation for the programme has also been reduced, with Rs 26,000 crore earmarked for 2026–27, compared with Rs 36,000 crore in the previous financial year.

The Ladki Bahin Yojana was introduced by the ruling Mahayuti alliance ahead of the 2024 state assembly elections and has since become one of its key welfare initiatives.

During the verification process, more than 2.4 million beneficiaries were initially flagged as government employees due to confusion caused by a Marathi-language question. After further scrutiny, around 2 million of those accounts were cleared as eligible, while checks on the remaining cases are still under way.

The government has clarified that it will not seek to recover funds already disbursed to individuals later found to be ineligible. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde have also reaffirmed that the scheme will continue despite the ongoing review.

With PTI inputs