Delhi Lakshmi Yojana: ₹2,500 monthly aid from Aug 28; women with over 3 children ineligible
The Delhi government has announced that the first instalment of its 'Delhi Lakshmi Yojana' — a monthly financial assistance of ₹2,500 for eligible women — will be released on August 28, coinciding with Raksha Bandhan. Approximately 17 lakh women are expected to benefit from the scheme, which was a key promise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2025 Delhi Assembly elections.
According to an official statement from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), the government has also laid out additional eligibility criteria. Women with more than three living children are not eligible. Other exclusions include income taxpayers, Goods and Services Tax (GST) return filers, government employees, families with annual electricity consumption exceeding 2,400 units, families where a member works for the state or central government, any public sector undertaking, or any government organisation. Additionally, women who already receive benefits under any government pension or regular financial assistance scheme are ineligible, as are families that own a four-wheeler. The family's annual income must not exceed ₹2.5 lakh, and the beneficiary or her family must have no criminal record. Only women who have been residents of Delhi for at least ten years qualify, and within a family, only the eldest eligible woman will receive the benefit.
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta stated that eligible women can choose between two options. Under the first option, ₹1,500 will be deposited in a recurring deposit (RD) or fixed deposit (FD), while ₹1,000 will be credited to a digital rupee wallet. The amount in the digital wallet can only be spent on permitted goods and services as per a 'Negative List' specified by the government. Under the second option, the entire ₹2,500 will be placed in an RD or FD, aimed at helping women build long-term savings.
Ms. Gupta said that the government has fulfilled its promise to women within just over a year of assuming office. 'Under the Delhi Lakshmi Yojana, every eligible woman will receive ₹2,500 a month as financial assistance. The scheme will usher in a new chapter of financial security and self-reliance for lakhs of women,' she said.
The scheme, originally called 'Mahila Samriddhi Yojana', was a prominent BJP poll promise. During the election campaign, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said the scheme would be approved at the first Cabinet meeting of a BJP government and described it as 'Modi ki guarantee'. He also said women would start receiving the benefit by March 8, 2025. The Delhi Cabinet approved the scheme on March 8, 2025, allocating ₹5,100 crore, later revised to ₹5,110 crore in the annual budget. However, the rollout was delayed until now.
