For days now, there was confusion over which woman in the family will be eligible to get the Rs 2000 financial assistance promised by the Congress under the Gruha Lakshmi scheme. News channels had been running segments on whether the daughter-in-law or mother-in-law will get the assistance. On Friday, June 2, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, while announcing the implementation of the schemes, clarified that the woman head of the household, as identified by the family, will be given Rs 2000.
CM Siddaramaiah said that the process of collecting the required documents including bank details and Aadhar card will begin from June 15. He said that the processing of the same will start from July 15, 2022. “We have already said that the woman who is the head of the household has to provide the details and fill in a form between June 15 and July 15. The applications will be processed and on August 15, we will launch the scheme. We will deposit money in their accounts based on the details people have provided,” he said.
Reiterating that whoever has been identified as the woman head by the family will get the Rs 2000 in their account, CM Siddaramaiah said that it does not matter how many women are there in a family. The scheme is applicable both to women who hold Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Above Poverty Line (APL) ration cards.
The Gruha Lakshmi Yojana, according to the Congress manifesto, is aimed at empowering women heads of households. Once the processing is done, the amount will be directly deposited in the beneficiary’s bank account.
The implementation of the five guarantees promised in the Congress manifesto were officially approved by the government on Friday. The decision was announced after they were ratified in a Cabinet meeting. Apart from the Rs 2000 scheme, the Congress had promised to provide up to 200 units of free electricity to all households under the Gruha Jyothi scheme, which will be implemented from July 1. The CM, however, clarified that consumers will have to first clear any pending bills.
Free bus travel for women under the Shakti scheme will begin from June 11. CM Siddaramaiah said this will be provided in all Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) and Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) buses across the state, excluding air-conditioned and sleeper buses. The launch of the Anna Bhagya scheme under which 10 kg of food grains will be provided to the BPL and Antyodaya ration card holders will begin from July 1. The Yuva Nidhi scheme under which unemployed graduates will receive a monthly allowance of Rs 3,000, and Rs 1,500 to unemployed diploma-holders, was also announced.