Rename Ladki Bahin scheme after Ajit Pawar: NCP leader

Mumbai: NCP legislator Amol Mitkari on Tuesday demanded that the Maharashtra government's flagship Mukhyamantri Ladki Bahin Yojana be renamed after late Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Ajitdada (as Pawar was fondly called) was the favourite brother of women in the state, Mitkari told reporters. "His wrist would be full of rakhis when he travelled across the state during his yatras. The state government would give a true tribute to him if it names the scheme as Ajitdadanchi Ladki Bahin scheme (Ajitdada's Ladki Bahin scheme)," the MLC said.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Pawar and four others were killed in a plane crash at Baramati in Pune district on January 28. The Ladki Bahin scheme, announced by Pawar when he was the finance minister and started in July 2024, provides an assistance of Rs 1,500 every month to eligible women in the age group of 21 to 65 through direct bank transfer. The scheme is believed to have played a crucial role in the victory of the BJP-led Mahayuti in the 2024 assembly elections. Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday said the government won’t stop the monthly financial assistance to women under the scheme as it is helping them immensely, and that the aid will be increased from Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,100 at the right time.