The Delhi Lakshmi Yojana, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government's flagship monthly cash transfer scheme for women, went live on Saturday, 1 August, with Chief Minister Rekha Gupta launching the online portal and registration camps across the national capital. Over 1,000 women enrolled on the first day alone, according to East Delhi District Magistrate Vadodaria Karanjit P., as eligible beneficiaries stand to receive ₹2,500 per month in direct financial assistance.

How the Scheme Works

The portal enables women to register either online — through a mobile phone or computer — or in person at district offices set up across all 13 districts of Delhi. Delhi Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa announced that BJP MLAs have deployed additional staff at constituency offices to assist applicants with the process. Eligible beneficiaries can walk into their local MLA's office to complete registration and begin receiving the monthly payout.

The scheme carries a budgetary allocation of approximately ₹5,100 crore, according to BJP MLA Anil Goyal, who noted that the outlay was built into the Delhi Budget by Chief Minister Gupta. The assistance is targeted at economically weaker women in the city.

What BJP Leaders Said

BJP MP Kamaljeet Sehrawat described the launch as part of a broader women-welfare push, noting that the government had already introduced the 'Pink Pass' for free travel in DTC buses and bicycles for Class 9 girls. 'Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta was keen to introduce this scheme for women,' she said, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'always thinks about making women independent.'

BJP MLA Abhay Verma called it a 'long-standing demand,' saying: 'The Opposition also kept raising questions about it. We had said that the scheme would be implemented at the appropriate time, but they did not believe us... Our intention was clear from the beginning. We wanted to implement this scheme, and we have now brought in a proper system to ensure that the maximum number of women can benefit from it.'

BJP MLA Ravi Kant described the scheme as 'an important step towards bringing prosperity,' while Goyal pointed out that Modi had promised the ₹2,500 monthly figure during the election campaign, framing Saturday's launch as a fulfilment of that pledge.

Beneficiaries React on Day 1

Women who registered on the first day expressed relief and gratitude. A housewife said the scheme would end her financial dependence on her husband and allow her to meet basic needs independently. A senior citizen who enrolled said she would be 'happiest when the money actually comes into her account' — a sentiment that underscores the gap between registration and disbursement that beneficiaries are keenly aware of. A younger applicant noted that the monthly amount would enable women to 'do something substantial.'

Context and What Comes Next

The Delhi Lakshmi Yojana joins a growing list of state-level direct benefit transfer schemes for women across India, including Madhya Pradesh's Ladli Behna and Maharashtra's Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin — all of which have been credited with influencing electoral outcomes in their respective states. This is the first major women-welfare cash transfer rolled out by the BJP government in Delhi following its return to power. The government has not yet specified a disbursement timeline; the immediate priority is maximising registrations across all 13 districts. How quickly verified beneficiaries begin receiving payments will be the key metric to watch in the weeks ahead.