YAVATMAL: Maharashtra govt‘s much-hyped ‘Mukhyamantri Ladki Bahin‘ scheme, which aims to financially empower women, had a botched launch when the beneficiary money landed in a man’s account on Friday.
Jaffar Sheikh, a young man from Yavatmal’s Arni taluka, was surprised to receive ₹3,000 in his dormant account of a nationalised bank. He had neither applied nor submitted any document to become a beneficiary since the scheme was solely meant for women.
The state govt has already disbursed the stipend into accounts of 96.3 lakh women, a day before the scheme’s official kick-off on Saturday.The state had begun transferring the stipend for two months – ₹3,000 – from August 14 to avoid last-minute glitch.
‘State technical team to trace applicant of Ladki Bahin scheme’
Jaffar Sheikh, of Arni taluka, recieved a sum of `3,000 as part of the ‘Mukhyamantri Ladki Bahin’ scheme disbursement even though he had not applied for it. Yavatmal ZP CEO Mandar Patki acknowledged the glitch and his office has forwarded the complaint to concerned authorities for investigation.
Jaffar Sheikh said he opened the account around 12 years ago, but it remained inactive due to lack of transactions. He was surprised to receive a message stating that the money had been deposited with a request to update his Aadhaar KYC. He visited the bank and sought a statement of his account. It was then that Jaffar realized that the amount was indeed credited under the “Majhi Ladki Bahin” scheme.
The incident triggered a stir in the administration, as many women have been struggling to submit applications due to issues over linking Aadhaar with their bank accounts.
Patki said, “We have forwarded details of this case to the state technical team for investigation. We will find out who the woman beneficiary is and from where the form was filled out.” He added prima facie it seems the issue is related to Aadhaar card details.
“When the form moves to scrutiny level, the Aadhaar number is partially masked with only the last four digits visible. It could be possible that the last four digits of the woman applicant and Jaffar matched. Also, this form could have been filled from anywhere in Maharashtra. The state will trace the original applicant and ensure she receives the money due to her,” said Patki