The Lakshmir Bhandar Project is a philanthropic scheme launched by the state government to provide monthly financial assistance to women between the ages of 25 and 60. However, the state finance minister announced a new decision stating that women over 60 years of age will also receive benefits from the scheme. General category women will receive Rs 500 per month, while scheduled caste women will receive Rs 1000. Previously, women had to stand in line for old age pension after receiving benefits from Lakshmir Bhandar.
In the 2023 budget, the rules were changed so that all beneficiaries of Lakshmir Bhandar would be automatically converted to Old Age Pension. Women who were receiving Rs 500 will now receive Rs 1000. To be eligible for the scheme, applicants must have an Aadhaar card and a bank account linked to it. The government has issued instructions to include everyone except those without Aadhaar cards in the scheme. Many fraudulent applications have been rejected, and approximately two crore women are currently receiving benefits from the scheme.
The government plans to organize camps across the state to increase the number of beneficiaries before the next panchayat polls. Therefore, it is recommended that everyone prepare their Aadhaar card, bank account details, and other documents in advance to avoid any issues while applying for the Lakshmir Bhandar project grant.