West Bengal's 'Lakshmi Bhandar' Scheme Eases Women's Applications

By: WE Staff | Monday, 9 February 2026

• The West Bengal Government launched the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme to help achieve self-sufficiency for women
• The process of applying will be simplified, thus making it easier for rural and urban women to get access.

The ‘Lakshmi Bhandar’ scheme, which was created by the West Bengal Government to support women’s self-reliance, has been continually modified to make it more successful, with a target date of 2026 for its expansion and success.

With the recent changes to this program, applying for the scheme has been simplified so that women living in both rural and urban areas can apply without unnecessarily restrictive requirements.

One of the requirements for women applying for funds under this scheme has been having a ‘Swasthya Sathi’ card. However, many women were eliminated from consideration because they did not have such a document.

This problem can now be solved with the new guidelines, because the presence of this document will no longer be necessary. Women will be able to apply for assistance through this scheme without the card and still be eligible for participation.

Women who already have this document can include it with their application; however, the absence of this document will not prevent women from applying for or receiving assistance.

To apply for this program, they must be a West Bengal resident who has lived in for at least the last five years.

Government employees or retirees on a regular government pension are ineligible for this program. Once you submit your application, you will receive a set of required documents, which must be returned to complete your application.