Panaji— More than 21,000 women in Goa have been temporarily removed from the Griha Aadhar Scheme after missing the deadline to link their Aadhaar numbers with their bank accounts. As a result, their monthly financial assistance of ₹1,500 has been suspended until the necessary linkage is completed.
The Directorate of Women and Child Development had earlier set a deadline of April 1, 2024, for all beneficiaries to switch to the Aadhaar Based Payment System (ABPS), a move intended to streamline direct transfers and prevent duplicate or fraudulent claims. However, thousands of women either failed to complete the process or encountered technical issues at the bank level, where their Aadhaar details were not properly mapped in the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) system.
Speaking on the situation, WCD Director Manuel Barretto said, “Women who haven’t received their Griha Aadhar benefit need to either link their Aadhaar with their bank account or request their bank to update the Aadhaar details in the NPCI mapper. Once updated, the suspended payments will be credited.”
In addition to these technical setbacks, the scheme has faced scrutiny over misuse. A recent verification drive revealed that nearly 3,000 ineligible women — mostly spouses of government employees — were receiving benefits despite not meeting the eligibility criteria. The department has since begun recovering funds and has already reclaimed over ₹1 crore.
Introduced in 2013, the Griha Aadhar Scheme was designed to provide financial assistance to homemakers from families earning less than ₹3 lakh annually. But over time, challenges such as unverified accounts, ineligible claimants, and outdated beneficiary data have raised concerns about transparency and efficiency.
The government has urged all affected women to act quickly to restore their benefits. “We are committed to ensuring that genuine beneficiaries continue to receive support. But accountability and proper verification are equally important,” an official from the department added.
Beneficiaries can approach their respective banks for Aadhaar seeding or contact the nearest WCD office for assistance.
