Bihar's Women Entrepreneur Scheme Funds Wrongly Credited to Schoolgirls in Muzaffarpur
In a significant administrative lapse, financial assistance funds intended for women under the Bihar government's Mukhyamantri Mahila Udyami Yojana were erroneously transferred to the bank accounts of several school-going girls in Muzaffarpur district. This irregularity has triggered a formal probe into the possible misuse of official logins and beneficiary data within the scheme's implementation system.
Not an Isolated Incident
This is not the first instance of funds from this women-centric scheme being credited to ineligible recipients. In December of last year, a similar discrepancy occurred when several men incorrectly received Rs 10,000 each in their accounts under the same program. The state government had subsequently issued notices to those individuals, directing them to return the misallocated funds.
Details of the Latest Irregularity
The latest case surfaced in the Sahila Balli panchayat under the Aurai block of Muzaffarpur. Here, the scheme's stipulated amount of Rs 10,000 each was credited to the accounts of multiple schoolgirls, who are categorically ineligible under the program's strict guidelines.
The Mukhyamantri Mahila Udyami Yojana, launched ahead of the Bihar Vidhan Sabha elections, is designed to provide financial assistance to one woman per family to help her initiate a business venture. To date, approximately 1.81 crore women have received Rs 10,000 each under this initiative. Those who utilize this seed capital to establish an enterprise become eligible for additional assistance of up to Rs 2 lakh.
Scheme Eligibility Criteria
The program has clearly defined eligibility parameters:
- Women must be aged between 18 and 60 years.
- No family member—such as a husband or unmarried children—should be employed in a government or contractual position.
- The household must not fall under the income tax slab.
- Eligible women must be associated with Jeevika self-help groups.
The enrollment process involves women not already in Jeevika groups being added by the Gram Sangathan. Applications are then forwarded to the block level, entered into the system, and finally sent to the district-level officer for approval. The case in Aurai, where beneficiaries were found to be school students, represents a clear violation of these fundamental criteria.
Official Investigation Underway
District Project Manager (DPM) Anisha confirmed the investigation. She visited the site on Friday and examined the login records of the block project manager. "The entries were not made from Aurai. We have verified that," she stated, indicating that the data manipulation may have originated elsewhere.
Anisha added that the matter is being investigated further. She explained that around 8.31 lakh beneficiaries in rural areas of Muzaffarpur received the funds, a process during which multiple logins were utilized. "Someone may have misused the login with bad intention, but this will be ascertained during the investigation," she remarked.
When questioned about the exact number of students who wrongly received the money, the DPM responded, "I do not have exact figures, but I have information about at least two such cases." The investigation aims to uncover the full scope of this misallocation and identify those responsible for the breach in the beneficiary selection and fund transfer process.
