12,431 men got benefits under government’s flagship scheme for women in Maharashtra: Report
Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has reportedly found that at least 12,431 men received benefits under the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, a scheme intended exclusively for women aged 21 to 65 from families with an annual income below Rs 2.5 lakh, which provides Rs 1,500 per month.
According to data obtained by The Indian Express through a Right to Information (RTI) request, 12,431 men and 77,980 women were wrongly disbursed Rs 1,500 for 13 months and 12 months, respectively, under the scheme. The erroneous payments amount to approximately Rs 24.24 crore for men, Rs 140.28 crore for women, and at least Rs 164.52 crore in total.
In its response to RTI queries from the newspaper, the Women and Child Development (WCD) department, which runs the scheme, stated that all 12,431 men and 77,980 women identified as ineligible have been removed from the list of beneficiaries following a verification process.
In a separate RTI response, the WCD department revealed that at least 2,400 government employees, including men, had availed undue benefits under the scheme, and disciplinary proceedings had been initiated against them. However, the department also confirmed that no action or recovery process has been initiated so far in any of the cases involving wrongful disbursement, the report added.
When asked about the RTI data, a state government official described the irregularity as the “tip of the iceberg”. “We are yet to calculate the total amount paid to these ineligible accounts. These figures may rise as verification continues,” TIE quoted the official as saying.
The official also mentioned that disbursement of funds to 26.34 lakh suspect accounts was suspended in June-July 2025 pending verification.
Officials further pointed out that the “irregularities” were uncovered during a verification exercise, which primarily found that the misuse of the scheme was due to the submission of incorrect data and misrepresentation of income and asset details by the beneficiaries.
“Some beneficiaries were availing multiple government schemes at the same time. In several households, more than two members were receiving benefits. Thousands of government staffers were found taking benefits despite being ineligible. Some had annual incomes exceeding Rs 2.5 lakh,” TIE quoted an official as saying.
The official added that, to prevent further misuse of the scheme, a statewide e-KYC verification drive has been launched for all existing and new beneficiaries, and the process is expected to be completed soon.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
