Around 68 lakh accounts out of 2.43 crore in Maharashtra’s Ladki Bahin Yojana were permanently closed due to not completing the mandatory e-KYC process. The deadline for e-KYC was extended to April 30, impacting the final count of active accounts. Currently, the state has about 1.75 crore active beneficiaries under the scheme.
The state government allocates approximately Rs 3,700 crore monthly for nearly 2.25 crore beneficiaries, with each eligible woman receiving Rs 1,500 per month. Due to the decrease in beneficiaries, the monthly outlay is expected to decrease. In the 2026-27 Budget, the allocation for Ladki Bahin Yojana was reduced to Rs 26,000 crore from Rs 36,000 crore in 2025-26.
The e-KYC process was initiated following complaints of ineligible beneficiaries, including male members and some government employees, receiving benefits. The Ladki Bahin Yojana, introduced by the Mahayuti government before the November 2024 Assembly elections, provides eligible women with a monthly financial aid of Rs 1,500.
Despite concerns about the financial impact, the scheme played a significant role in the Mahayuti government’s electoral success. An incorrectly framed question during e-KYC led to confusion among beneficiaries, resulting in over 24 lakh accounts being flagged as belonging to government employees, pausing their payments.
The Marathi question, “Tumchya gharatle koni sarkari nokrit nahi na?” (“Nobody in your family works for the government, right?”), was misinterpreted by some beneficiaries. While around 20 lakh of these flagged accounts have been verified as genuine, verification for the rest is ongoing. The government has decided not to recover funds disbursed to ineligible beneficiaries, with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde affirming that the scheme will continue.
