Haryana Budget: Rs 5,000 Crore Not Enough for All Women to Get Monthly Rs 2,100 Aid

The Haryana government's flagship "Lado Laxmi Yojana" may not reach all 96 lakh women above the age of 18 in the state due to insufficient budget allocation. Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, who also serves as Finance Minister, has earmarked Rs 5,000 crore for the scheme in his first budget presented on Tuesday.

Sources revealed that the government would need Rs 2,016 crore monthly, amounting to Rs 24,192 crore annually, to provide the promised Rs 2,100 monthly assistance to every eligible woman in Haryana.

Congress Questions Allocation

The announcement immediately drew criticism from Congress leaders in the Assembly. Former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and BB Batra questioned Saini about the criteria for selecting beneficiaries, pointing out that the allocation was inadequate to fulfill the BJP's election promise. 

The Congress termed the Rs 5,000 crore allocation "too little" and pressed the government to clarify how it would determine which women would receive the benefit. 

CM's Response

Responding to the questions, Chief Minister Saini stated that the Rs 5,000 crore allocation was "just a beginning" and that the criteria for providing financial assistance to women were still being finalized.

The Rs 2,100 monthly assistance to women was one of the BJP's major promises during the campaign for the October 5, 2024, Assembly elections.

State Debt Concerns 

The budget also revealed that Haryana's debt has risen to Rs 3.52 lakh crore in the 2025-26 budget estimates, up from Rs 3.17 lakh crore in 2024-25 and Rs 2.84 lakh crore in 2023-24. 

Former CM Hooda expressed concern over the mounting debt, claiming that 30.26% of the budget would go toward debt repayment.

However, CM Saini defended the state's financial position, asserting that the economy was in good shape and that the debt remained within limits set by various statutory bodies of the Central Government.