Shimla News
Himachal government will re-verify beneficiaries under Indira Gandhi Pyari Behna Samman Nidhi Yojana
So far 1,245 women have received benefits, ineligible women will have to return the money.
Shimla, September 02: The Himachal Pradesh government has announced a re-verification process for beneficiaries under the Indira Gandhi Pyari Behna Samman Nidhi Yojana. The applications of women who have received three installments under the scheme will be checked to ensure their eligibility. If found ineligible, the beneficiaries will have to return the Samman Nidhi amount received in the last three months.
To strengthen the verification process, the state government will now send all the applications to the respective panchayats, including the applications of women who have already been benefited. These applications will be reviewed by the Gram Sabha, after which the approved list will be sent back to the department for distribution of future installments.
So far, the government has deposited an amount of ₹4,500 for three months in the accounts of 1,245 women of the district. However, with the district welfare department receiving over 55,000 applications, the final decision on eligibility will now depend on the gram sabha.
District welfare officer Chaman Sharma stressed that only those applications approved by the panchayats will continue to receive the Samman Nidhi. “If any beneficiary is found ineligible, he or she will have to return the amount received,” Sharma said.
The scheme, aimed at providing financial assistance to women, has specific eligibility criteria. Women from families comprising central or state government employees, pensioners, contract workers, daily wage earners and several other categories will not be eligible for the scheme. This includes families of serving or ex-servicemen, Anganwadi workers, social security pension beneficiaries and individuals registered for goods and services tax or paying income tax.
The gram sabha’s verification process is expected to identify ineligible recipients, to ensure that the benefits of the scheme go to those who really need it, while money will be withdrawn from those who are not eligible.
