Prateek Tanmay
3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Jul 30, 2026 10:41 PM IST
The Delhi government is planning to conduct door-to-door, random verification of women found eligible for the Delhi Lakshmi Yojana, under which beneficiaries will receive a monthly financial assistance of Rs 2,500, The Indian Express has learnt.
As part of the verification process, the government will check whether applicants meet the scheme’s eligibility conditions – whether they have more than three living children, if they are residents of Delhi and registered voters of the city, if they pay income tax, are they in the 21-60 years age group, whether their family’s income is up to Rs 2.5 lakh per annum and if they receive any other financial aid from the Centre or the state, among others.
The three-child cap is a first-of-its-kind exclusion criteria introduced by the Delhi government for its social welfare schemes.
“The application process is very simple and easy. People can submit their information from anywhere. Verification is necessary to ensure only eligible beneficiaries receive the assistance,” a senior government functionary said.
The functionary added that the Women and Child Development (WCD) department might engage a third-party agency to conduct the random checks. “The objective is to ensure that the scheme reaches the needy and deserving beneficiaries while maintaining transparency in the implementation process.”
Asked about the three-child cap, the senior functionary said, “Some Opposition parties are trying to give it (three-child cap) a religious angle but they are wrong. Be it a Hindu or Muslim, it is one’s choice on how many children they want to have…”
Besides, this might be a step towards better family planning and population control, the functionary said. “People these days are educated and follow family planning. But in many lower middle class families, women are still pressured to have four-five children until they have a boy…”
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“For family planning and population control, you have to take steps somewhere… The government has come up with a proper financial plan with two bifurcations – the woman can either invest the Rs 2,500 and get an lumpsum amount with interest after three years or she can invest Rs 1,500 and spend the rest through a digital card,” the functionary said.
“This gives her the right to decide where she wants to spend her money… In many families, husbands pressure them… take their money to buy alcohol and tobacco… We want our mothers and sisters to independently use their money,” the senior functionary added.
According to officials, Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, who holds the WCD portfolio, has specially said that the scheme should empower women and also that their health is a priority.
The scheme, approved by the Cabinet on Tuesday, was one of the major poll promises made by the BJP in the run-up to the Assembly elections in 2025.
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“The scheme will initially be implemented for three years from the date it comes into effect. It may thereafter continue with suitable modifications,” the CM had said after the Cabinet nod.
A portal for registration under the scheme will be launched on August 1 and the disbursal of first instalment will begin from Raksha Bandhan, said officials.
