Vasundhara Raje’s Bhamasha Yojna Takes off

The Bhamashah Yojna for the state of Rajasthan, formulated and proposed by Vasundara Raja in her previous tenure was finally launched in Ajmer on Monday, 15^th December 2014. Lakhs and Lakhs of families below the poverty line will be the beneficiaries of this pilot scheme, by way of sending their women forth to avail it.

In the ceremony held to distribute the first few set of biometric cards to registered women, Vasundara Raje shed light on how the Bhamashah card scheme will provide dignity to women not only in their family but also in society, "The benefit of this program is to give financial inclusion and confidence to women so that they could come in the mainstream and walk shoulder to shoulder with men in both social and economical aspects," said Raje.

The card, aimed at being a substitute to the Aadhar Card, enables a woman complete and exclusive access to her bank account, restricting access to any third party unless authorized by the card holder. Every family that opens an account in the name of a woman member of their family under this scheme will receive a starting amount of Rs. 2000, and will also transfer the benefits of any state or central government scheme aimed at women, directly into their accounts. The card also facilitates transparency in the rationing system of the villages, as it becomes a pre-requisite for acquiring ration like sugar, oil and kerosene from the local shop.

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“Rajasthan is the first state in the country to have made women independent with the multi-purpose card so that they not only get a bank account but also have funds in different schemes transferred directly in their account. This one card will serve many purposes for a family," added Raje.

The scheme was to be implemented in her last tenure itself, but no bank was willing to come forth to provide the necessary backing. They finally roped in Punjab National Bank to carry out the scheme in her current tenure, to which she was immensely grateful.

Her government is also currently working on other women empowerment programs like training women hand-pumps mechanics, headed by the small savings groups. It is also planning a health insurance program for Bhamashah card holders from Rs 30,000-3 lakh plus one lakh rupees in case of accident and emergencies at specific health centers. With Ajmer in the pipeline for becoming a smart city, the Raje Government is doing everything in their power to make women as competent as men to embrace the new array of opportunities.

ORIGINAL SOURCE: Times of India

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/Scheme-to-empower-women-socially-economically/articleshow/45528993.cms