KOLKATA: With an eye on the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal, the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government on Thursday decided to increase the monthly grant for women -- the ruling party’s most reliable voting bloc -- by Rs 500 under the existing Lakshmir Bhandar scheme.
It also said it would provide a monthly allowance of Rs 1,500 to unemployed people aged between 21 and 41 years under the ‘Banglar Yuva Sathi’ scheme till they get jobs or for a period of up to five years.
The TMC government will implement the ‘Banglar Yuva Sathi’ scheme from August 15 if it returns to power. It may be recalled that the then CPIM-led Left Front government in Bengal had launched an unemployment allowance in 1978, which was stopped in 1982.
The state's finance minister Chandrima Bhattacharya announced the proposals while tabling a Rs 4.06 lakh crore interim Budget for the fiscal year 2026-27 in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly on Thursday.
Under the Lakshmir Bhandar, one of the populist schemes introduced by the Mamata Banerjee regime in the state since it came to power in 2011, the monthly allowance for women beneficiaries will shoot up to Rs 1500 from the existing Rs 1000. For those belonging to the SC/ST categories, the allowance will be Rs 1700 instead of Rs 1200.
Speaking to reporters at the assembly, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that the increased grant under the Lakshmir Bhandar would be effective from this month.
Reacting to the announcement, Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari said the BJP will form the government in Bengal in April and will provide a monthly grant of Rs 3000 to women from June 1. He said the BJP government at the Centre is seriously concerned over the safety and security of women across the country.
Under the proposed Budget, gig workers will be included in the state government's existing social security schemes like Swasthyasathi.
Allowances for Anganwadi workers and helpers were raised by Rs 1,000 each, with the Budget also promising a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin in the event of their death. A total allocation of Rs 280 crore was made. ASHA workers, another influential grassroots constituency, will also get an additional Rs 1,000 per month.
The interim Budget further announced a Rs 1,000 monthly pay hike for civic volunteers and Green Police personnel, with an allocation of Rs 150 crore. Government employees were not left out, as the state announced a four per cent hike in dearness allowance, a long-standing demand of staff unions.
