Women welfare schemes a big factor in NDA wins
BJP and its allies have outdone their political opponents in wooing this segment through targeted welfare schemes including Ladki Behen yojana, training women to become “drone didis”, more sops for aaganwadi workers, Ujjwala LPG cylinder scheme, and registering homes given under the PM Awas Yojana in the name of women.
Ex-Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar lead the pack as far as women welfare schemes are concerned. Chouhan launched the highly successful Ladli Lakshmi yojana for girls on April 1, 2007, nearly two decades back and reaped political dividends from it.
Buoyed by its success, Chouhan tried uplift his waning popularity in 2023 just months ahead of the Assembly elections by inaugurating another scheme for women- Ladli Lakshmi yojana. While all intended beneficiaries could not be added in the six months before the code of conduct kicked in, most women who got the funds backed BJP.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde acknowledged this scheme while launching the Ladki Behena scheme in his state. The economically weaker women get Rs 1500 per month under this scheme and this is one of the major contributors to the Mahayuti’s 230 seat haul in the 288-member Assembly in these elections.
JDU supremo and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has unflinching support of the women voters due to his policies like providing bicycles to school going girls and prohibition. Though there are strong arguments against prohibition- from rampant bootlegging to deaths due to
