Life Certificate Likely for Gruha Lakshmi Scheme to Stop Fund Leakage
State plans mandatory life certificate for Gruha Lakshmi beneficiaries to stop payments reaching deceased accounts after audits revealed massive fund leakage and urged pension style verification to protect public money.
The Karnataka government is preparing to introduce a major reform in the Gruha Lakshmi scheme by making submission of a life certificate compulsory for beneficiaries, aiming to prevent large scale misuse of public funds.
The move comes after officials found that financial assistance under the scheme was continuing to flow into bank accounts of beneficiaries who are no longer alive. The government believes that a verification system similar to the one followed by pensioners can help plug this serious loophole.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has directed the Chief Secretary to immediately examine the proposal and initiate corrective steps. This followed a written representation by Legislative Council member and Vice Chairman of the State Guarantees Implementation Authority, Dinesh Gooligowda, who flagged the issue and called for urgent intervention.
Under the Gruha Lakshmi scheme, women identified as heads of households holding Antyodaya, BPL or APL ration cards are eligible for monthly assistance. So far, around 1.24 crore beneficiaries have received benefits under the programme, with government expenditure crossing Rs 57,300 crore.
According to officials, the absence of periodic verification has resulted in funds being credited even after the death of beneficiaries. Regular life certificate submission would help ensure that only eligible and living beneficiaries continue to receive assistance, thereby safeguarding public money.
Speaking at a Guarantee Mela held during the Raichur Utsav, State Guarantees Implementation Committee Chairman H M Revanna revealed startling figures. He stated that over 1.44 lakh women beneficiaries have passed away, and payments continued to be credited to more than 68,000 of these accounts even after their deaths.
Officials estimate that nearly Rs 80 crore has been wrongly transferred through about 3.98 lakh instalments of Rs 2,000 each to deceased beneficiaries. The proposed reform is expected to bring greater transparency and accountability while ensuring that the welfare scheme reaches the deserving without leakage.
