Patna: Around 2.5 million women in Bihar have received Rs 10,000 each under the state government’s Chief Minister’s Women’s Employment Scheme, with a total of Rs 2,500 crore transferred directly into beneficiaries’ bank accounts.
The chief minister, Nitish Kumar, disbursed the funds via direct benefit transfer (DBT) on Monday during a video conference event held in Patna. Simultaneous programmes were organised at district, block, cluster and village levels to mark the transfer.
District-level events were held across all 38 district headquarters in the state and were chaired by senior district officials. Between 150 and 200 women linked to Jeevika self-help groups attended each district programme.
Similar events were organised across 1,680 cluster-level federations under Jeevika, with at least 100 women from self-help groups participating at each cluster. The programme was also broadcast to approximately 70,000 village organisations.
The scheme is intended to support women in becoming financially independent and starting small businesses. In the first phase, each beneficiary has received Rs 10,000. The government has outlined a five-stage assistance plan totalling Rs 2 lakh per beneficiary. Following the initial Rs 10,000 transfer, women will receive Rs 20,000 in the second phase, Rs40,000 in the third, Rs 80,000 in the fourth and Rs 60,000 in the fifth and final phase.
Officials said special personnel would be deployed in 3,398 wards across the state to oversee the next stages of implementation. A detailed verification process will be carried out at ward level in both rural and urban local bodies. This will include physical verification of applicants to ensure that eligible beneficiaries are correctly identified before further funds are released.
