Even the state is scattered on cash transfer for women after the state, the weakest, pregnant women, deprived of their legal rights of maternity benefits. Worse, whatever they were paid, they seem shrinking. The main responsibility for this is with the Central Government.
Under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013, all pregnant women (except those already covered in the formal field) are entitled to the maternity benefit of a child. On today’s prices, it will mean at least ₹ 12,000. Even, of course, there is a bile. Nevertheless, confirming the principle of universal maternity entitlement was a great feature of NFSA. Even in relatively well -closed houses, pregnant women are often deprived of nutritious food, health care or rest time. Maternity benefits can help them take care of themselves and the newborn.
As they are, maternity benefits under NFSA have not yet been distributed. The central government is pretending to do so under the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY). The benefits of PMMVY, however, are limited to a family, have recently been expanded to another child if it is a girl. This restriction is a clear violation of the Act. In addition, the profit has been arbitrarily reduced to ₹ 5,000 for the first child.
Rough information
Even these restricted and low benefits are being denied a large number of women entitled. This failure is well hidden, as the Ministry of Women and Child Development reveals very little information on PMMVY. The Ministry seems unaware of Section 4 of The Right of Information (RTI) Act, which asks for active-active disclosure of basic information. Even PMMVY figures are not in public domains.
However, the ministry answered our RTI questions on PMMVY. Based on this information, we have estimated effective coverage of PMMVY, which is defined as a ratio of pregnant women that receive at least one installment of PMMVY benefits. This is a broad definition: the first installment is just ₹ 3,000, and strictly applied to the second installment (front-loaded for girls of the second). Estimates: Effective coverage 2019-20 36% reached an ineffective 36% and then declined rapidly, except for a partial revival in 2022–23. In 2023-24, effective coverage crashed only by 9% (see graph).
This accident is also seen in budget data. The Central Government spent on PMMVY in 2023-24, at the bottom of all time of 870 crores-one-third of the same figure, that too in the context of money. For only ₹ 6,000 births for 90% of all births, PMMVY will require a total budget of at least ₹ 12,000 crore.
Official line
We discussed these data with the officials concerned in the Women and Child Development Department at central and state levels. He did not deny that PMMVY came in a virtual stagnation in 2023-24. He blamed it on major changes in software and implementation processes, which were introduced at the end of 2023. Further investigation of the data shows that the main problem was not a decrease in applications, but a low disbursement rate. According to an official, “every day” had software problems.
However, the problem did not begin in 2023-24. The PMMVY launched in 2017 has been plagued with all complications. Some of them are related to Aadhaar-based payments and digital atrocities. There are many reports that have attracted attention to these complications and their exclusion effects. However, instead of responding to these grassroots reports, the central government created more complications in 2023-24 with disastrous consequences for Indian women. For the government, of course, reduction in PMMVY spending is a good deal. Can this be a reason that the tendency to create obstacles is so flexible?
Examples of Tamil Nadu and Odisha
Meanwhile, states such as Tamil Nadu and Odisha have shown the possibility of designing simple and effective maternity-profit plans since 1987 and 2009 respectively. The monetary support he has introduced is more enough under PMMVY – ₹ 10,000 is a child in Odisha and Tame 18,000 is a child in Tamil Nadu. In Odisha, the amount was doubled before the 2024 general election. In Tamil Nadu, the Dravidian Munnetra Kazgam (DMK) promised to increase it to ₹ 24,000 in its 2021 election manifesto, and the party is waiting for the next election to implement this promise. PMMVY benefits, for their share, have never been raised, despite being less than the NFSA criteria in the first place.
Not only Odisha and Tamil Nadu are high, but their implementation is also much better. The data stated in Odisha’s Economic Survey shows that maternity benefit is about 64% of all births in 2021-22 (the latest year for which data is available). In Tamil Nadu, coverage in 2023–24 was 84%, when all India coverage under PMMVY was below 10%. Conversely, it can hardly be faster.
In the formal sector, Indian women enjoy a full 26 -week paid maternity leave (based on the amendment of the Maternal Benefits Act 1961 in 2017 compared to the 14 -week World Health Organization Criteria). In the unorganized field, they get a flat ₹ 5,000 if they are lucky that they are enough to avoid all the hops that they will have to jump for PMMVY benefits. These are double standards.
The time has come that PMMVY is a flop show. The central government seems more worried than saving money than helping pregnant women. As a result, it has ruined a program which can prove to be very useful and popular. It also stands in the major violations of NFSA. The entire program needs to be re -prepared according to the letter and spirit of the Act. Benefits should also be raised and sequential to the price level. The entire society stands to achieve better public support for pregnant women.
Jean is going to a professor at Dredge Economics Department, Ranchi University. Ritika Khera Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) is a professor of economics at Delhi
Published – 27 February, 2025 12:16 AM IST