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Journalism of Courage
As the Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal enter its last two laps, the Mamata Banerjee government’s Lakshmir Bhandar scheme seems to have taken centre stage.
In their campaigning, the leaders cutting across party lines — from the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) to the principal Opposition BJP – have been debating this scheme.
Here is a look at why the scheme has figured so prominently in the poll discourse in the state.
Ahead of the 2021 Bengal Assembly elections, TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee had promised to implement a direct benefit transfer (DBT) programme to help women in the state “who had lost their savings to demonetisation”. She walked the talk after her third straight victory and in February 2021, launched the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme.
Under the scheme, women belonging to the general category receive a monthly assistance of Rs 500 while women from the Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) sections get Rs 1,000 per month. The scheme has got massive response, with a large number of women being seen queuing up during the “Duare Sarkar (government at your doorstep)” drive to register themselves for it.
All women under the age of 60 are eligible for the scheme. According to government data, there are over 2.1 crore beneficiaries of the scheme across the state, making it the Mamata government’s largest financial assistance programme.
Ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the TMC government in its budget increased the assistance under the scheme to Rs 1,000 a month for women of the general category and Rs 1,200 for SC/ST women.
Recently, addressing a rally Mamata charged that the BJP would stop the scheme if it comes to power in the state. “I dare them to stop the scheme. Benefits under the scheme are women’s rights. Only Bengal can do this to help the women. The BJP has stopped funds to Bengal under various schemes and wants to deprive people of their money while our government provides financial assistance to the people,” she said.
In response, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, at a rally in Uluberia in Howrah district on May 14, said that the scheme would continue if the BJP comes to power. “We will not stop the scheme. In fact, we will raise the assistance by Rs 100. We are committed to the welfare of the people of Bengal,” he said.
Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the state Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, seen as one of Mamata’s fiercest critics, said the BJP would triple the assistance if voted to power.
Among the factors cited for the Mamata-led TMC’s landslide victory in the 2021 Assembly polls was the pledge for the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme. The party benefited from the massive support of women that it got, especially in the rural belts.
This time too, the parties in the fray have been focusing on reaching out to women and garner their votes. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, women voters’ turnout was higher than that of men – 81.79% as against 81.35% – even as the BJP registered its best performance in the state, winning 18 seats out of 42 – just 4 behind the TMC’s 22.
The women electorate, as per the Election Commission’s updated rolls, in Bengal is 3.73 crore, 15 lakh less than the registered male voters. However, there has been an increase in the registration of women voters in the state, with their numbers rising as much as 9.8% between 2019 and 2024 as compared to 7.39% for men.
In the first four phases in the state, which saw 18 seats go to polls, women voters’ turnout was said to be higher than that of men.
