Review of Gruha Lakshmi beneficiaries under way; process will not affect genuine recipients, says Chandrabhoopal

The review of beneficiaries of the Gruha Lakshmi scheme, a guarantee scheme by the State government, will not affect the genuine recipients, C.S. Chandrabhoopal, Chairman of the Shivamogga district Guarantee Schemes Implementation Authority, said on Monday.

In a communique to the media, Mr. Chandrabhoopal said the State government had issued an official order to re-verify all beneficiaries of the Gruha Lakshmi scheme through biometric and facial authentication to ensure that the scheme reaches eligible recipients. The re-verification drive has been launched to weed out ineligible beneficiaries while ensuring uninterrupted, timely benefits for all those who remain eligible.

“Many cases of the beneficiary amount being credited in the names of those who have died, migrated, or paid income tax and GST over the past three years have come to light. The government has decided to remove such names from the list of beneficiaries,” Mr. Chandrabhoopal said.

The re-verification would be carried out through a web and mobile application developed by the Directorate of Electronic Delivery of Citizen Services. Members of guarantee scheme authorities and government staff would visit households to distribute enumeration forms, which beneficiaries must fill out and return during the same visit. Officials would digitally record the beneficiary’s photograph, GPS coordinates, facial authentication, and Elector’s Photo Identity Card (EPIC) details on the spot, he stated.

The Department of Women and Child Development has been given administrative responsibility for completing the process within one month. In case the facial authentication fails or is not possible during the household visit, beneficiaries may complete biometric verification at the nearest fair price shop, Grama One, Karnataka One, or at a Bapuji Seva Kendra (Common Service Centre). Biometric data submitted at fair price shops for ration collection after July 1 would also be obtained from the Food Department and cross-verified.

The Gruha Lakshmi scheme has completed three years. “In Shivamogga district, a total of ₹2,391 crore has been directly credited to the bank accounts of 3,78,031 beneficiaries (account holders) since August 30, 2023, through direct benefit transfer, across 32 instalments of ₹64,000 each per beneficiary,” Mr. Chandrabhoopal said.