'Lek Ladki Yojana', launched by the Maharashtra government with the aim of increasing the birth rate of girls in the country, curbing evil practices like feticide, stopping child marriage and ensuring girls' 12th and higher education, is proving to be a big boon for poor and middle class families. Under this scheme, a total financial assistance of ₹ 1,01,000 (Rupees One Lakh One Thousand) is provided directly into the bank account of daughters born in families belonging to economically weaker sections of the state at various stages from birth till they turn 18 years of age. Earlier, to avail benefits under this scheme, parents had to repeatedly visit government offices and collect dozens of documents. But now the State Women and Child Development Department has made the application process completely modern and streamlined. Under the new rules, unnecessary documentation requirements have been reduced and the entire system has been linked to Aadhaar-based digital e-KYC, so that eligible families can get the benefits of the scheme directly in their bank accounts without any middleman or delay. The entire benefit of ₹ 1.01 lakh is available in 5 installments: Know how much amount will be given in which class. The biggest feature of the Lake Ladki scheme is that instead of giving a lump sum, this amount has been linked to the important milestones of the daughter's education and age, so that the parents do not leave the daughter's education midway due to lack of money: First installment (at the time of birth): On the birth of the daughter, the first financial assistance of ₹ 5,000 is given for immediate nutrition and health care. Is. Second installment (on entry into Class 1): When the girl child joins formal school in Class 1 at the age of 6, ₹6,000 is released for school kit and books. Third installment (on admission in class 6th): The third installment of ₹ 7,000 is available at the time of admission in upper primary education i.e. on taking admission in class 6th. Fourth installment (on entry into class 11): ₹8,000 is provided to promote higher education when the girl child enters class 11 (Higher Secondary) after completing secondary education. Fifth and largest installment (on completion of 18 years): When the daughter successfully completes 18 years of age, remains unmarried and her name is enrolled in the voter list, a lump sum maturity amount of ₹75,000 is transferred to her account. In this way, by including all the five installments, the girl child gets a total financial security circle of ₹ 1,01,000. Application process made easier with Aadhaar e-KYC: Now quick verification will be done with less documents. As part of the recent reforms, the state government has fully integrated the digital portal of Lake Ladki Scheme with the state database and Aadhaar server. Whereas earlier many photocopies of income certificate, residence certificate, bank verification and school records had to be submitted again and again, now in the new system most of the information is automatically verified by the system as soon as the Aadhaar number is entered (Auto-fetch). According to the Women and Child Development Minister, now the Aadhaar authentication of mother, father and girl child is done in one go through 'e-KYC'. This has eliminated the problem of data mismatch and the pending time of applications has reduced from several weeks to just a few days. Also, local Anganwadi workers and supervisors have been entrusted with the responsibility of uploading forms directly from door to door through mobile apps and online portals, so that women in rural areas do not have to spend extra money at any cyber café. Eligibility Criteria: Which daughters are eligible for this scheme? The basic rules laid down by the government to avail the benefits of Lekh Ladki Scheme are as follows: Date of Birth Limit: The scheme is applicable only to girl children who are born on or after April 1, 2023. Category of Ration Card: It is mandatory for the family to have a valid Yellow or Orange/Saffron ration card issued by the Government of Maharashtra. Family Income Limit: The total annual income of the beneficiary family should not exceed ₹1,00,000 (Rupees One Lakh). Native of Maharashtra: The girl's family must be a permanent resident of Maharashtra state and the beneficiary must also have a bank account in a bank located in Maharashtra. Family Planning Condition: This benefit is limited to a maximum of two surviving daughters of the family. If the first child in the family is a boy or a girl and in the second delivery a daughter or twin daughters are born, then the benefit will also be available, provided that after the second delivery the mother or father will have to present a certificate of Family Planning Operation. Last condition of 18 years: To get the last installment of ₹75,000, it is necessary that the girl child is unmarried till she turns 18 years of age and has completed her studies till class 12th. New and concise checklist of documents required for application After simplifying the process, now only the following required documents are required for the application: Official Birth Certificate of the girl child. Aadhaar card of parents (the requirement of Aadhaar for the newborn girl is exempted at the time of first installment, Aadhaar for the girl child is mandatory in the subsequent installments). Attested copy of yellow or orange ration card. Annual income certificate (less than ₹1 lakh) issued by Tehsildar or competent authority. Domicile/Residence Certificate of Maharashtra. Copy of first page of bank passbook (joint account of mother and girl child or account with father, linked to Aadhaar and DBT-activated). Bonafide/Admission certificate of the concerned school for further installments. Family Planning Surgery Certificate (if applicable). How to apply offline and online in Lake Ladki Scheme? To avail the benefits of the scheme, parents can apply in two easy ways: Through Anganwadi Center (Most accessible mode): Parents in rural and urban areas can visit their nearest Anganwadi Center or Child Development Project Officer (CDPO) office. Get the free 'Lake Ladki' application form from there. Fill the required details in the form and submit it to the Anganwadi Sevika along with the documents. Anganwadi workers and supervisors, after preliminary verification of the documents, directly upload them on the official portal. District Women and Child Development Office: Applicants can also directly submit their application and e-KYC verification at the 'District Program Officer' (Zilla Parishad) office of their district. Payment directly into the account by DBT: Once the verification process is completed, the beneficiary list is approved by the District Level Committee and the installment amount is sent directly to the beneficiary's bank account through the Public Financial Management System (PFMS). A strong foundation for the bright future of daughters, Maharashtra Government's Lake Ladki Yojana is not just a financial assistance program, but it is a powerful social movement to change the thinking towards daughters in the society and make them self-reliant. This assistance of ₹ 1.01 lakh, provided from birth till adulthood, completely removes the financial burden of girl child's upbringing and higher education from poor families. If a daughter is born in or around your house after April 1, 2023, and the family falls in the yellow or orange ration card category, then immediately contact your nearest Anganwadi center and get registered in this welfare scheme and secure the future of your darling.
