By Aditi S Bade
On March 8, 2025, exactly on the dawn of International Women’s Day, the government of Delhi blessed with a very important scheme, Mahila Samridhi Yojana, providing a monetary benefit exclusively for women belonging to low-income families. Chief Minister Rekha Gupta informed that the scheme would cover a monthly assistance amount of up to ₹2,500 per eligible woman and allocated a budget of ₹5,100 crore to execute it.
The scheme is to be implemented for women aged between 18 years and 60 years, whose annual income does not exceed ₹2.5 lakh. For that, the government’s intention is to open a portal through which applicants would be enabled to register in the simplest and most transparent manner possible for this particular scheme. A committee under the leadership of Chief Minister Gupta has been formed to monitor the implementation of the scheme, thus demonstrating the commitment of the administration towards women.
This scheme has received accolades from many quarters, but it also faced criticism from some opposition parties. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) says the BJP assemblage government is up to “optics management” since no date for implementation of this announcement has been given. AAP spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar pointed out that during the elections, there was no mention of the terms and conditions now associated with the scheme, suggesting a deviation from initial promises.
As per Delhi political party manifestos, provision of cash to women is a central theme. For instance, the Congress party vowed to give every woman ₹2,500 overall per month access in their first few years in office, apart from certain other benefits like up to ₹25 lakh worth of healthcare and 300 units of free electricity.
Similarly, the BJP also promised in its manifesto that every woman would be paid ₹2,500 per month, ₹21,000 during pregnancy, and LPG cylinders at ₹500.
To all that, and in fact in response to all the accusations, Chief Minister Gupta then said, It’s a government committed to delivering on its electoral promises. So, the government is setting the infrastructure for rolling out this scheme, and registrations would start soon. Promptly achieves the government in getting the money into beneficiaries’ hands.
Thus, this Mahila Samridhi Yojana is a big boost to women’s welfare in the economically weaker sections of the cities of Delhi. Well, during the course of the implementation of the scheme, the provisions have the potential to touch the lives of many women and ensure such financial dependency capabilities, which are essential to enhancing their lives.