During a ceremony in Guwahati, Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma began the distribution of Orunodoi Cards to new recipients. The program, which aims to empower women from low-income households, would directly deposit ₹1,250 into their bank accounts on the tenth of every month.
Launched on Thursday, the Assam government’s flagship ‘Orunodoi 3.0’ programme for poverty reduction covers 37.2 lakh beneficiaries through direct cash transfers, a major expansion of the programme’s coverage. With a ₹5,604 crore budget, ‘Orunodoi 3.0’ is the largest state-run Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme in Assam’s history, adding nearly 12.5 lakh new beneficiaries over the previous edition.
The government added almost 10,000 additional beneficiaries from every single one of Assam’s 126 assembly constituencies as a result of the approximately 10 lakh persons who completed the forms.
The government plans to spend ₹467 crore per month, or ₹5,604 crore yearly, to implement ‘Orunodoi 3.0’. “In independent Assam, such a large-scale scheme has never been implemented,” said the Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma.
To help identify people who might no longer be eligible, current beneficiaries must reapply in order to continue receiving payments. A family’s annual income of less than ₹4 lakh, no government work, and ownership of a ration card are requirements for eligibility.
Additionally, applicants need to have a valid Aadhaar-seeded ration card and be permanent residents of Assam.
The district administration will make sure that eligible individuals from prior editions are not excluded when choosing beneficiaries for “Orunodoi 3.0,” unless they do not meet the new standards.
According to the Chief Minister of Assam, other governments have praised the idea, with Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra putting similar efforts into action under other names.
“Orunodoi,” which debuted on December 1, 2020, was enlarged for a second edition on December 14, 2022.