Transgender women Are Being Excluded From Maharashtra’s Cash Scheme For Women
With no clarity on trans women beneficiaries, and the many hurdles to establishing gender identity, the Ladki Bahin scheme is becoming exclusionary
The latest scheme of the Maharashtra government to empower women from low-income homes by providing them a monthly financial assistance of Rs 1,500, excludes transgender women, we found through multiple interviews conducted across the state.
With assembly elections around the corner, the state government recently announced the Mukhyamantri Mazi Ladki Bahin Scheme, which is patterned along the lines of the Ladli Behna scheme being run by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Madhya Pradesh government. Launched before the 2023 assembly elections, the latter scheme is believed to have got the BJP significant electoral support from the women voters of Madhya Pradesh.
Maharashtra’s finance minister Ajit Pawar allocated Rs 46,000 crore for the Ladki Bahin scheme during the state budget session for FY 2024-25. The stipend is available to all women whose annual family income is less than Rs 2.5 lakh and who are aged between 21 and 65 years. Potential beneficiaries must register for it by August 31, 2024.
Many women who registered have already received two instalments, days before Rakshabandhan, a significant festival in Maharashtra. Ladki Bahin translates to “dear sister” and it projects the idea of the government as a benign big brother figure that “protects” women from household-level economic crises.
However, trans women from various districts in Maharashtra, including Mumbai, Kalyan, Chatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (formerly Aurangabad) and Jalgaon have not received any benefits from the scheme though they have applied for it, we learnt. Activists argue that this is a case of systemic exclusion.
Enrollment Issues
The enrolment process for the scheme requires documents such as Aadhaar, bank passbook details, ration card or an income certificate in the absence of a ration card, domicile or birth certificate or any other document establishing that beneficiary is a resident of Maharashtra state for over 15 years. The bank account of the beneficiary has to be linked with the Aadhaar number. Along with this document, a self-declaration form must be submitted.
More than a dozen trans women from Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (Aurangabad) applied for the Ladki Bahin Yojana, but their applications were rejected due to incomplete documentation, said activists.
“This is a structural issue. The state is aware that transgender individuals face challenges in obtaining identity documents, often due to red tape. Special consideration should have been made for trans women in the documentation verification process for this scheme,” said Reshma, a trans woman from Chatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.
Reshma said the official documents and government resolutions for the scheme should have explicitly included trans women. “If the administration doesn’t clearly state this in official papers, those responsible for implementing the scheme won’t classify trans women as women,” she said.
Structural Exclusion
This is not the first such scheme to be criticised for being exclusionary. Trans women were also excluded from the 2023 Mahila Sanman Scheme which provides discounted bus fares to women in Maharashtra, Behanbox had earlier reported.
Obtaining the necessary identity documents and meeting compliance requirements is a significant challenge for trans women, we found in interviews with trans women from Mumbai, Kalyan, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, and Nashik. Whether it is Aadhaar, PAN, bank passbook or Transgender Identity Card, fulfilling the requirements of government departments is an exhausting and frustrating process, they said.
Family members often do not help transgender individuals with reference documents, for instance, with a permanent address proof. At government offices, the staff are not sensitised enough about gender equality and this leads to hostile behaviour and demands for bribes and sexual favours, said trans women and gender activists.
Obtaining an income certificate requires multiple visits to the tehsil office, which means loss of daily wages for trans women, many of whom cannot afford to miss a day’s work. “We don’t get the certificate in one visit. It takes several days and multiple trips to the tehsil office, causing us to lose pay and incur travel costs,” Reshma explained.
‘Don’t We Deserve Equality?’
Shamibha Patil, transgender activist based in Jalgoan, reported that many trans women were so frustrated by the process that they have decided to not bother with the income certificate or with applying for the scheme. “It’s not just a matter of Rs 1500. What this [discrimination] reinforces by excluding us is that we are not women enough and we don’t deserve equality,” she said.
Trans women involved in begging or sex work because of lack of employment opportunities complained about being shamed at at the tehsil office when they are asked to disclose their occupation and income. “Despite being compelled to engage in this work, when I mention that I beg or do sex work to earn a living, I am met with unwelcome gestures and looks and misogynistic remarks,” said a trans woman from Nashik who wished to remain anonymous.
According to the landmark NALSA judgement and the National Women’s Commission, a universal Transgender Identity Card issued by the Social Justice Department, along with an Aadhaar card are enough for any trans woman to access welfare schemes. But, as we said above, there are many hurdles to obtaining this card at the Social Justice Department’s district or taluka office. And those who do manage to get a card find many discrepancies in it, leading to problems with the verification process for welfare schemes.
Many transgender individuals either leave their identity documents with their families or link them to a family members’ Aadhaar card, and they end up facing difficulties in obtaining OTPs (One Time Passwords) for online registrations to secure other documents such as the PAN card.
Most In Need
According to activists transgender activists, there are approximately 10,500 registered transgender individuals in the state, with at least 10,000 being trans women. Activists believe the actual number is higher because only a small number actually get to register, as we said above.
Trans women are among the most in need of the Ladki Bahin Yojana because of their extreme vulnerability, said Rushali Disha, a Mumbai-based trans woman working in the development sector.
“Most trans women lack access to education and dignified employment. Those involved in begging and sex work suffer from severe and constant health issues, leading to unstable incomes and subhuman living conditions. These women are the most in need of the scheme’s benefits, yet they are precisely the ones excluded,” she said.
Rushali, who has been vocal on social media about issues of transgender persons, shared the story of a trans woman who is pursuing higher education but does not receive benefits from any welfare scheme. “She begs at traffic signals for three hours a day, is abused by her landlord, and has been asked for sexual favours for not paying rent on time. Women like her are in dire need of state support,” said Rushali.
Apeksha, a young trans woman from Badlapur in Thane district, has written several social media posts criticising the Ladki Bahin Yojana for excluding trans women. “The state government spent Rs 199 crore on publicising this scheme. They could have easily included trans women, but we are at the bottom of the pyramid, and no scheme reaches us. There needs to be a separate, exclusive scheme for trans women,” said Apeksha.
In a cabinet meeting on August 25, Ajit Pawar had said that even women from affluent families, including those owning 20 acres of land, have applied for the Ladki Bahin Yojana and some have been given its benefits.
Behanbox contacted the finance minister’s office with a questionnaire seeking clarification on why trans women have been excluded from the scheme’s ambit. We are yet to receive a response.
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