Senior Congress leader, Rajya Sabha MP and AICC General Secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala on Wednesday questioned the Punjab Government over the launch of the ‘Maawan-Dhiyan Satkar Yojana’, alleging that the women-centric welfare scheme had been introduced late in the government’s tenure without adequate financial planning.
In a statement addressed to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, Surjewala said governments are judged by their ability to honour public commitments rather than political messaging. He maintained that women deserve meaningful empowerment backed by sustainable policies and adequate financial support.
The Congress leader referred to the newly launched scheme under which eligible women from the general category are to receive ₹1,000 per month, while Scheduled Caste women are entitled to ₹1,500 per month. He questioned why the initiative was introduced nearly four years after the Aam Aadmi Party assumed office, alleging that it resembled welfare programmes already being implemented in other states, including Karnataka’s Gruha Lakshmi Scheme.
While stating that the Congress supports initiatives aimed at improving the welfare of women, Surjewala argued that such programmes should be accompanied by clear financial provisions to ensure their long-term implementation rather than being announced close to elections.
Seeking clarification from the state government, he raised four questions regarding the scheme, asking whether adequate funds had been earmarked for its continuation, why it had been launched at a late stage of the government’s tenure, whether it would continue beyond the current political cycle, and whether it was intended as an election-oriented announcement.
Surjewala also questioned the financial viability of the programme. Referring to population estimates, he claimed Punjab has around 1.51 crore women, including nearly 95.13 lakh in the general category and about 55.87 lakh belonging to the Scheduled Caste category. Based on these figures, he estimated that implementing the scheme in full would require around ₹21,472 crore annually and nearly ₹16,104 crore for the remaining nine months of the current financial year.
He further alleged that the government had earmarked only ₹1,500 crore for the scheme, claiming that a substantial portion of the allocation had been arranged through borrowings while the remaining amount was sourced from GMADA funds and labour cess.
Calling for greater transparency, the Congress MP said the people of Punjab, particularly women beneficiaries, deserve clarity on the funding mechanism, implementation roadmap and long-term sustainability of the scheme. He asserted that welfare programmes should rest on sound financial planning and not merely on political announcements.