Funds meant for women credited to girls’ bank accounts in Muzafffarpur, probe underway

Patna: In a serious lapse, funds meant for women under the state govt’s Mukhyamantri Mahila Udyami Yojana were transferred to the bank accounts of several school-going girls in Muzaffarpur, triggering a probe into possible misuse of official logins and beneficiary data. This is not the first instance of funds meant for women being credited to ineligible recipients. In Dec last year, several men had also wrongly received Rs10,000 intheir accounts under the same scheme, and the state govt had issued notices to them directing to return the amount.The latest irregularity surfaced in Sahila Balli panchayat under Aurai block of Muzaffarpur, where Rs 10,000 each was credited to the accounts of several schoolgirls.The scheme, launched ahead of the Bihar Vidhan Sabha elections, aims to provide financial assistance to one woman per family to help her start a business. Around 1.81 crore women have so far received Rs10,000 each, who utilise the amount to set up an enterprise will soon be eligible for additional assistance of up to Rs2 lakh.Under the scheme guidelines, women aged between 18 and 60 years are eligible, provided no family member—such as a husband or unmarried children—is employed in a govt or contractual job, and the household does not fall under the income tax slab. Eligible women must be associated with Jeevika self-help groups. Those not enrolled are to be added by the Gram Sangathan, after which applications are forwarded to the block level, entered into the system, and then sent to the district-level officer for approval.However, in the Aurai case, the beneficiaries were found to be school students. District project manager (DPM) Anisha said 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 said, adding that the matter is being investigated further.Anisha said around 8.31 lakh beneficiaries in rural areas of Muzaffarpur received the funds, during which multiple logins were used. “Someone may have misused the login with bad intention, but this will be ascertained during the investigation,” she said. When asked about the number of students who received the money, she said, “I do not have exact figures, but I have information about at least two such cases.”