CAG flags ₹3,541 crore excess spend, ₹15,586 crore fund parking in Maharashtra’s Ladki Bahin Yojana

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has highlighted serious concerns over financial management in Maharashtra’s flagship Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, pointing to excess expenditure of ₹3,541.16 crore, large-scale parking of funds, and weaknesses in budget allocation and planning, as per a PTI report.

As detailed in the CAG State Finances Audit Report 2024-25, tabled in the Maharashtra legislature, the Women and Child Development Department spent ₹33,237.24 crore on the scheme against the approved allocation of ₹29,693.09 crore. The department, the report explained, did not provide a specific explanation for the additional spending.

The audit also clearly elucidated the fact that ₹15,586 crore withdrawn between January and March 2025 was transferred to Virtual Personal Deposit Accounts (VPDAs) rather than being utilised immediately. The CAG termed this practice a violation of financial discipline, stating that funds should not be drawn from the treasury unless there is an immediate expenditure requirement.

This withdrawal and parking of funds in VPDAs without immediate requirements, according to the CAG, highlights a serious financial irregularity. It is also ‘contrary to the principles of budgetary discipline and financial prosperity.’ Not only this, but it also undermines the legislative control and authority over public finances.

Key financial observations by CAG

What is the Ladki Bahin scheme?

The Ladki Bahin scheme, approved on 28 June 2024, provides ₹1,500 per month through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to eligible women aged 21 to 65. The initiative was launched with the stated objective of promoting women’s economic independence and empowerment.

The scheme represented a major shift in the state’s welfare spending

The CAG observed that the scheme represented a major shift in the state’s welfare spending. Expenditure on women’s welfare increased sharply from ₹261.78 crore in the previous year to more than ₹33,500 crore, reflecting a move towards large-scale direct benefit transfers rather than asset creation.

Furthermore, the audit recommended that all departments responsible for implementing major DBT programmes should undertake realistic, fact-based assessments of beneficiary numbers and total funding requirements when drafting budgets. This, as with the audit, will also help avoid excessive supplementary demands, unplanned and unauthorised expenditure, and spending.

CAG flags fund gaps, seeks tighter controls in Maharashtra scheme

The CAG also advised the government of Maharashtra to ensure that treasury withdrawals are directly linked to actual and immediate requirements, warning that parking public money in deposit accounts weakens legislative control and oversight. That is why it is clear that the government should focus more diligently on its financial management and ensure transparency.

Given that the scheme continues to provide much-needed financial assistance to lakhs of women across Maharashtra, the audit findings underline the need for stronger economic planning, transparency in fund management and tighter financial regulations and controls to ensure that welfare programmes remain both efficient and fiscally sustainable.