Annapurna Yojana verification: With less than a week left for the launch of the Annapurna Yojana portal, preparations are underway to accommodate new applicants for the scheme. The scheme will replace the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme launched in 2021 by the previous government led by Mamata Banerjee.
Under Annapurna Yojana scheme, women will be provided financial assistance of Rs 3,000 per month. The scheme is intended to support the empowerment and socio-economic upliftment of women residing in West Bengal.
On May 19, the Women and Child Development and Social Welfare Department issued an official order stating: “For new applicants, online application facility shall be launched in the Annapurna Yojana Portal with effect from 1st June, 2026.”
Who may lose eligibility during Annapurna Yojana verification
According to the notification, all existing beneficiaries of the Lakshmi Bhandar Scheme will be migrated to the new welfare scheme. However, several beneficiaries may lose eligibility for Annapurna Yojana benefits, including those identified as dead, shifted, deleted or absentee electors during SIR-2026, those deleted in the second list after publication of the draft list, those removed after adjudication, and ASSD cases detected during voter slip distribution.
However, beneficiaries who have filed appeals before the SIR Tribunal or submitted applications under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act will continue to receive financial assistance under the new scheme until their applications are disposed of. “Likewise, names of dead and shifted beneficiaries will be deleted in future on a regular basis,” the statement reads.
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Annapurna Yojana eligibility criteria
According to the notification, the applicant must be between 25 and 60 years of age. The applicant should not be engaged in any permanent government employment or receiving a regular salary or pension from the Union or West Bengal government, any statutory body, government undertaking, panchayat, municipal body or local authority.
The applicant should also not be employed in a teaching or non-teaching role in any government-aided educational institution in West Bengal. Apart from this, the applicant should not be an income tax payer.
People stand in queue outside a Post Office to complete the verification process for the 'Annapurna Yojana' in West Bengal's Balurghat. (PTI Photo) 
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