Annapurna Yojana: Women's welfare money deposited in man's account; Trinamool responds: “After filling the 12-page form…”

There have been fresh allegations that money from the Annapurna Yojana welfare scheme has been wrongly credited to men. One particular incident in West Bengal has raised serious questions about the distribution system of the state government.

In this case, a 74-year-old man, Sanjit Biswas of Chandpur in Nadia district, received an unexpected credit. On Thursday, he visited the local customer center to collect his retirement pension.

He held his account ₹799. After two months ₹2,000 pension was credited and his balance should have been ₹2,799. Instead he found ₹5,799 in his account.

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The center’s employees tracked down the helper ₹3,000 to the BJP government’s Annapurna Yojana scheme using his Aadhaar number, according to Anandabazar Patrika. Biswas said he did not collect the amount.

Krishnanagar 1 BDO Ranjan Sardar acknowledged the anomaly, the publication added. He said this may have happened due to a mistake. Officials have been sent to Biswas’s house for verification and remedial action is expected.

The state began to transfer ₹3,000 under the Annapurna Yojana to verified beneficiaries from Wednesday. The incident follows earlier allegations that money from the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme was also deposited in the men’s accounts, leading to several arrests.

The All India Trinamool Congress, led by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was quick to address the incident. An official TMC user on social media shared a screenshot of the message.

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“Annapurna Bhandar is also meant for senior citizens, BJP Bengal? How did this person in Nadia, after filling a 12 page form, going through several rounds of verification and endless scrutiny, get the benefits of Annapurna Bhandar?” asked Banerjee’s side.

“So much for your claims about ‘strict verification’ and ‘zero gaps’. SLOW PAWS!” added.

Social network users responded to the post.

“Furthermore, almost all of the so-called below the poverty line basically earn over 12,000 to 15,000 a month because they work in nearby apartments and houses as domestic helpers. THIS NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED,” wrote one.

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“Kya fursat hai (You have plenty of time) – audit which individual gets what from govt. SEBI ban gaye aap log – watchdog. Good. Keeping govt in check. Do,” another user commented.

Allegation by BJP

The BJP, now in power, has repeatedly accused the previous TMC government of mismanagement. The 65-year-old homeopathic doctor from Pingla in West Midnapore was said to have been receiving widow’s pension for two years.

Amlendubikash Mondal, a resident of Yashrajpur village, was earlier arrested and produced before the court of the Chief Magistrate, Midnapore. The judge ordered three days of police custody.

Mondal claimed that he applied for old-age pension in 2022. He said he did not know how the widow’s pension started going to his account.

He also claimed to have informed the local panchayat members after noticing the deposits. No action was taken at the time, he claimed.