Lok Sabha Question No. 328 (STARRED), answered on 2023-08-11
Subject: Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana
Ministry: WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: DNV Senthilkumar. S., Kuldeep Rai Sharma

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. 328 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.08.2023

## PRADHAN MANTRI MATRU VANDANA YOJANA

328.     DR. DNV SENTHILKUMAR S.: SHRI KULDEEP RAI SHARMA

Will the Minister of WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) the present status of implementation of Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY);
- (b) whether the long and tedious documentation has rendered single women and young brides out  of  its  purview,  if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  corrective actions taken in this regard;
- (c) whether the scheme has seen a paltry increase in funds in the budget despite demands for higher allocation and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) the  other  steps  taken  by  the  Government  for  the  welfare  of  women  in  the country?

## ANSWER

MINISTER FOR WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT (SHRIMATI SMRITI ZUBIN IRANI)

- (a) to (d)         A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

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## Statement referred to in reply to part (a) to (d) of the Lok Sabha Starred Question No. 328 for answer on 11.08.2023 raised by Dr. DNV Senthilkumar S. and Shri Kuldeep Rai Sharma regarding Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana

(a) to (d)   Under Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), more than 3.36 crore beneficiaries have been enrolled, since inception of the Scheme in 2017-18 and till 24.07.2023.  Further, maternity benefits of more than 13,788 crores (includes both Central and State share) have been disbursed to more than 3.06 crore beneficiaries during the aforesaid period.

The Ministry of Women and Child Development has developed a new portal for registration  of  beneficiaries  under  PMMVY  in  accordance  with  Mission  Shakti guidelines. The process of registration of beneficiaries by filling physical forms has been  dispensed  off.  The  Anganwadi  Worker  or  Accredited  Social  Health  Activist (ASHA) now fills forms on behalf of the beneficiary on new PMMVY portal. Provision of self registration of beneficiary has also been made on new PMMVY portal so that a beneficiary  or  an  individual  on  behalf  of  the  beneficiary  can  register  an  eligible beneficiary on new PMMVY portal. The mandatory condition of providing husband's Aadhaar has also been removed. This enables single mothers to enrol themselves under PMMVY.

Sufficient budgetary provisions have been made under PMMVY. The Budget Estimates (BE) for the year 2023-24 under PMMVY is ₹2067.86 Crore.

The Government gives utmost priority to the safety, security and empowerment of women. The Government has adopted multi-pronged approach to address the issue of women on a life-cycle continuum basis for their educational, social, economic and political  empowerment  so  that  they  become  equal  partners  in  fast  paced  and sustainable national development.

In  the  past  few  years,  a  number  of  initiatives  have  been  taken  for  holistic development  and  empowerment  of  women.  The  Government  of  India  implements various  schemes/  programmes  for  welfare  of  women/girls  in  which  community participation  plays  an  important  role.  Under  National  Rural  Livelihoods  Mission (NRLM), nearly 9.0 crore women are connected with around 83 lakh women's selfhelp  groups  that  are  transforming  rural  socio-economic  landscape  in  several innovative and socially and ecologically responsible ways, also availing governmental support including through collateral free loans. The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (MGNREGA) mandates that at least one third of the jobs generated under the scheme (MGNREGS) should be given to women.

National Agriculture Market or e-NAM, an online trading platform for agricultural commodities is helping women overcome or compensate the barriers they face in accessing  markets.  National  Cooperative  Development  Corporation  (NCDC)  is playing a significant role to uplift women cooperatives as large number of women are engaged and involved  in  cooperatives  dealing  with  activities  related  to  food  grain processing,  plantation  crops,  oilseeds  processing,  fisheries,  dairy  &  livestock, spinning mills, handloom and power loom weaving, Integrated Cooperative Development Projects, etc. Other schemes include Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP), Samagra  Shiksha,  Babu  Jagjivan  Ram  Chhatrawas  Yojna,  Swachchh  Vidyalaya

Mission,  Swachchh  Bharat  Mission,  etc.  In  order  to  enhance  the  employability  of female workers, the Government is providing training to them through a network of Women  Industrial  Training  institutes,  National  Vocational  Training  Institutes  and Regional Vocational Training Institutes. To ensure economic independence of women through skill development  and  vocational  training,  the  Government  has  also introduced Skill India Mission.

The  Anganwadi  Services  under  Mission  Poshan  2.0  is  a  universal  scheme under  which  pregnant  women  and  lactating  mothers  are  eligible  for  the  services including the Supplementary Nutrition Programme (SNP).

Construction of over 11 crore toilets under 'Swachchh Bharat  Mission', clean cooking gas connections  to over 9.50 crore women below poverty line under 'Ujjawala Yojana' and connecting over 12.60 crores out of 19.43 crores rural household with tap drinking water connections under 'Jal Jeevan Mission' have transformed the lives of women by reducing the drudgery and care burden.  Prime Minister's Rural Digital Literacy Campaign (Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Sakasharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA) that seeks to make 6 crore persons digitally literate, by covering one member from every  eligible  household.  Over  53%  of  the  beneficiaries  under  PMGDISHA  are women.

Through the 73 rd  amendment to the Constitution of 1/3 rd  seats in the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) have been reserved for women. However, today there are more than  14.50  lakh  Elected  Women  Representatives  (EWRs)  in  PRIs,  which  is approximately 46% of the total elected representatives. The Government is providing training to the EWRs from time to time to build on their capacity.

The Ministry of Women and Child Development implements 'Mission Shakti', an Integrated Women Empowerment Programme, as Umbrella Scheme for the Safety, Security and Empowerment of Women. The 'Mission Shakti' has two sub-schemes namely "Sambal" for safety and security of women and "Samarthya" for empowerment of  women.  Under  'Samarthya'  sub-  scheme,  a  new  component  i.e.  Hub  for Empowerment of Women (HEW) has been included with the aim to facilitate intersectoral  convergence of  schemes and programs meant for women at the Central, State/ UT and District levels for creating an environment in which women are able to realize their full potential. The support under the HEW provides for guiding, linking and hand  holding  women  to  various  institutional  and  schematic  set  ups  for  their empowerment and development including access to healthcare,  quality  education, career  and  vocational  counseling/  training,  financial  inclusion,  entrepreneurship, backward and forward linkages, health and safety for workers, social security and digital literacy at districts/ Blocks/ Gram Panchayats level across the country.

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