On 27th May, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said that around 30 lakh beneficiaries of the state’s Lakshmir Bhandar scheme were found to be ineligible during an ongoing review of the database. According to him, many names continued to receive benefits even after being permanently removed from the voter list or despite not applying under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) process or approaching a Special Intensive Revision (SIR)-linked tribunal.
Addressing a virtual press conference from Nabanna, Adhikari said the BJP government is now preparing a fresh beneficiary list before rolling out its new “Annapurna Yojana” from 1st of June. The new scheme has replaced the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government’s Lakshmir Bhandar programme.
“We thought that the Lakshmir Bhandar beneficiary list was verified. But many complaints came to us that nearly 30 lakh people whose names were deleted from the voter list, or who did not apply under CAA or appeal to the tribunal, are still getting money,” Adhikari said.
He clarified that the final number would become clear only after the new forms are collected and checked. At present, Lakshmir Bhandar has nearly 2.2 crore beneficiaries across the state.
Notably, several Bangladeshi women, who have gathered at Hakimpur Border in North 24 Parganas to return to Bangladesh aftre the BJP govt announced the Detect, Delete, Deport policy, have told the media that they were receiving benefits under the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme. The women said that TMC workers helped them in enrolling into the scheme, apart from helping them getting documents like Aadhaar card, ration card, voter card etc.
Fresh verification before Annapurna rollout
The Chief Minister said beneficiaries of Lakshmir Bhandar scheme would continue receiving their current payments until the verification process for Annapurna Yojana is completed. Under the new scheme, the BJP government has doubled the amount of financial support.
Earlier, women were paid ₹1,500 per month through the Lakshmir Bhandar, following several increases by the Mamata Banerjee-led state government. In addition, women from the SC and ST categories got ₹1,700 monthly. According to Annapurna Yojana, eligible women will be paid ₹3,000 per month.
The government has decided to provide new application forms to the beneficiaries, giving them 90 days to do so. People who apply for forms before June 2 and get their application accepted will receive their due starting next month.
Online and offline applications
Adhikari said the forms can be submitted both online and offline. Panchayats, municipalities, district administration officials and IT department teams will assist in the verification drive. Supervisors will also visit homes to collect forms.
“As this is a massive exercise, many departments will work together to create a transparent and clean database,” he said. “We have also asked people to provide family details because the government wants to build a proper database.”
The CM urged people not to rush, saying there was enough time for enrolment. Newly elected MLAs will also help in the process.
The state government will organise “Janakalyan Shibir” camps from 15th June to 17th June, where women can submit their forms directly.
Men also found receiving benefits
Adhikari also claimed that several men were receiving money under the women-focused scheme due to poor verification during the previous government’s tenure.
He gave the example of “Rakibul Sheikh”, a resident of Radharghat-1 gram panchayat in Baharampur, saying he was receiving Lakshmir Bhandar benefits despite the scheme being meant for women.
Officials said women who pay income tax, as well as present and former state and central government employees, will remain outside the eligibility list.
Supreme Court observation on Citizenship
Adhikari’s remarks came on the same day the Supreme Court upheld the legal validity of the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. At the same time, the court noted that the Election Commission’s findings in voter verification matters cannot be treated as a final decision on citizenship status because the process is limited to electoral purposes only.
