Bihar officials struggle to recover Rs 10,000 wrongly credited to men under women-only scheme
Darbhanga/Patna (PTI): Officials of the Bihar government are facing difficulties in recovering Rs 10,000 allegedly credited to male villagers under a cash-transfer scheme meant exclusively for women in the state's Darbhanga district.
A group of male villagers whose bank accounts received Rs 10,000 each have already spent the money, some during Chhath Puja and Diwali, while others purchased ducks and goats and are now unwilling or unable to return the amount.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched the Mukhyamantri Mahila Rojgar Yojana on September 26, ahead of the Assembly elections, under which Rs 10,000 was transferred to the bank accounts of around 1.40 crore women entrepreneurs.
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However, officials of Jeevika, a state government initiative for poverty alleviation which is implementing the Yojana, said the amount was mistakenly credited to the accounts of some men due to "technical glitches" at Ahiyari village in the district's Jale Assembly constituency.
Notices have been issued to at least three male villagers by the block project director of Jeevika, asking them to return the Rs 10,000 transferred to their accounts.
The recipients, who have been identified as Nagendra Ram, Balram Sahni and Ram Sagar Kumar, are disabled and economically poor.
They told reporters that several others have also received similar notices.
Talking to PTI, Bihar Rural Development Minister Sharwan Kumar told PTI on Wednesday, "I have asked Jeevika officials to submit a detailed report of such transfers, if any, to me at the earliest. It's a matter of concern". Jeevika scheme comes under the rural development department.
Talking to reporters, Nagendra Ram said, "I did not apply for the amount. The government transferred Rs 10,000 to my account. I am a disabled person, so I spent it during Chhath Puja and Diwali."
"Some others purchased goats and ducks. Now, we are getting notices to return the money. Where will I get it from? I request Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and other officials to forgive us and waive the amount," he said.
The incident raises serious questions about the implementation and payment mechanisms of government schemes, and there is widespread confusion and resentment among villagers over the issue.
It may be recalled that opposition RJD recently alleged that the NDA leaders were in such a hurry to 'buy votes' and come to power through bribery that they transferred Rs 10,000 to the bank accounts of some men instead of transferring it to women.
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Andhra to be developed as knowledge, creator economy hub: CM Naidu
New Delhi/Amaravati (PTI): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday said the state is taking steps to transform itself into a knowledge and creator economy hub with a strong focus on artificial intelligence and quantum technology.
He noted that Andhra Pradesh has abundant tech-driven youth and the government is formulating plans to train them in futuristic technologies with support from global technology firms.
"Our goal is to transform Andhra Pradesh into a knowledge hub by focusing on AI, quantum computing, data centres, drone cities and space cities. The youth will remain our biggest asset over the next 25 years, and we seek global partnerships to scale up the creator economy," said Naidu during his interactions at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in Delhi.
Naidu, who participated in the summit in the national capital, also held meetings with several global technology leaders and industrialists to explore collaborations in artificial intelligence, clean energy and innovation ecosystems.
He met Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, Autodesk AI Head Mike Haley, Aramco India Director Abdul Rehman AiThukair, LEGO Education Vice President Tom Hall, Aadhaar Founder and CTO Srikanth Nadhamuni, Khosla Ventures Managing Partner Vinod Khosla and others at the AP Pavilion.
The chief minister also held discussions with Saudi Aramco representatives on clean energy projects, including solar initiatives, and invited the company to expand operations in Andhra Pradesh, stating that the state is highly suitable for green energy production.
He sought support from NVIDIA Vice President Callista Redmond for establishing AI Living Labs and proposed partnerships through the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub to promote youth innovation, including collaborations with IIT Tirupati and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Tirupati under the Andhra Pradesh Future Innovation and Research for Science and Technology (AP FIRST) initiative.
Naidu urged Autodesk leadership to support the development of Global Capability Centres in design engineering and requested the establishment of an Innovation Academy in Amaravati aligned with quantum technology, besides proposing AI and robotics learning labs in partnership with LEGO Education.
He also discussed AI-driven smart governance solutions with Quantela Inc Chairman Sridhar Gadhi, while World Bank Group Digital AI Regional Director Mahesh Uttamchandani met Naidu on the sidelines of the summit.
Following the meetings, Naidu visited various exhibition stalls at the summit, including those of NVIDIA, Tata, Intel and Microsoft, and reviewed AI applications across agriculture, healthcare and industry.
