RANCHI: Amid questions being raised by the opposition parties over the feasibility of 'Mukhyamantri Maiyan Samman Yojana' terming it as a poll plank to lure the voters ahead of the Assembly polls in Jharkhand, Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Wednesday announced to decrease the age limit from 21 to 18 years for getting the benefits of the scheme. Now, all women from 18 years of age will get Rs 1000 per month under the scheme in Jharkhand.
Addressing a huge gathering during a programme organised in Ranchi, attended by the beneficiaries of 'Mukhyamantri Maiyan Samman Yojana', Soren said that a law will be made very soon in this regard. During the programme, CM Hemant Soren transferred money to the accounts of beneficiaries of the five districts -- Ranchi, Khunti, Lohardaga, Gumla and Simdega.
“I have voices from the distant villages that the girls between the age group of 18-20 years were left behind as girls up to 18 years are already getting benefits in their schools. We will very soon add the girls of the age group of 18-20 years with 'Mukhyamantri Maiyan Samman Yojana' so that they could also get the benefits of it and no one is left behind,” said Soren.
Please register your daughters of the age group of 18-20 years with the scheme so that a database is prepared and they can get benefits of the scheme as soon as the law is passed in the state, he added.
Notably, 'Mukhyamantri Mainiya Samman Yojana' is an ambitious scheme of the state government, under which, all women aged between 21 to 50 years in the state will get financial assistance of Rs 1000 every month in their bank accounts through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). The scheme was expected to benefit about 40 lakh women across the state.
Women of 50 years and above are already getting Rs 1000 per month under the universal pension scheme in the state.
Meanwhile, many of the schools in Ranchi remained closed on Wednesday after the district administration asked them to provide school buses for commuting the beneficiaries of ‘Mukhyamantri Maiyan Samman Yojana’ to Ranchi from different Blocks of the district. According to the order issued by the District Transport Officer, as many as 2000 buses were required to bring the beneficiaries to Ranchi from different parts of Ranchi.
In the meantime, a PIL has also been filed in Jharkhand High Court seeking ban on ‘Mukhyamantri Maiyan Samman Yojana.’ The petitioner, Vishnu Sahu of Simdega through his lawyer Rajiv Kumar, has alleged that the government is distributing free schemes ahead of Assembly polls to lure voters.
The petitioner in his PIL has also cited the Supreme Court's decision, which said that nothing could be distributed for free. The petitioner argues that this scheme has been brought solely for electoral gain which is a violation of Supreme Court's instructions, so it should be stopped immediately.
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