Married Women Dominate ‘Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana’ Beneficiary List

According to official data, 83% of the beneficiaries of Maharashtra's "Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana" are married women. The scheme offers financial support to women aged 21 to 65, including those who are married, widowed, divorced, deserted, or destitute.

Eligible women receive a monthly allowance of INR 1,500 if their family income is below INR 250,000 per year. Only one single woman per family can receive the benefit.

Since its launch last July, around 2.5 crore women have benefitted from the scheme. However, the government is now reviewing applications to remove those who are not eligible.

As per reports, married women make up 83% of recipients, while 11.8% are single women. Widows account for 4.7%, while divorced, destitute, and deserted women together make up less than 1%. Among them, 0.3% are divorced, 0.2% are deserted, and 0.1% are destitute women.

The scheme has the highest number of beneficiaries in the 30-39 age group, which makes up 29% of recipients. Women aged 21-29 follow closely at 25.5%, and those aged 40-49 make up 23.6%. The 60-65 age group represents only 5% of the beneficiaries.

Pune, Nashik, and Ahmednagar have submitted the most applications, while Sindhudurg and Gadchiroli have the fewest. The program, introduced by the Mahayuti alliance of the BJP, NCP, and Shiv Sena, played a role in their victory in the November 2024 assembly elections.

Before the elections, the Mahayuti alliance promised to increase the monthly stipend under the scheme from INR 1,500 to Rs 2,100. The new government, led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, is expected to announce this increase in the upcoming budget.

The government has begun a detailed review to identify ineligible beneficiaries. Officials expect to exclude up to 15 lakh people, a rise from the current five lakh. Women who own four-wheelers, work in government jobs, or receive benefits from other schemes exceeding INR 1,500 will not qualify either.

The scheme was initially estimated to cost the state exchequer INR 46,000 crore annually. It has faced allegations of political misuse and fraud.