Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana

Subject – Government Schemes

Context – Five years since its introduction, there is vast scope for improvement in the Pradhan MantriMatruVandanaYojana

Concept –

Pradhan MantriMatruVandanaYojana (PMMVY) is a maternity benefit programme being implemented in all districts of the country with effect from 1st January, 2017.
It is a centrally sponsored scheme being executed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme: Cash benefits are provided to pregnant women in their bank account directly to meet enhanced nutritional needs and partially compensate for wage loss.

Target Beneficiaries:

All Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers (PW&LM), excluding those who are in regular employment with the Central Government or the State Governments or PSUs or those who are in receipt of similar benefits under any law for the time being in force.
All eligible Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers who have their pregnancy on or after 1st January 2017 for the first child in the family.

Benefits under the Scheme:

Beneficiaries receive a cash benefit of Rs. 5,000 in three installments on fulfilling the following conditions:

Early registration of pregnancy
Ante-natal check-up
Registration of the birth of the child and completion of first cycle of vaccination for the first living child of the family.

The eligible beneficiaries also receive cash incentive under Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY). Thus, on an average, a woman gets Rs. 6,000.
Distinctive Feature: Implementation of the scheme is closely monitored by the central and state governments through the Pradhan MantriMatruVandanaYojana – Common Application Software (PMMVY-CAS).
PMMVY-CAS is a web based software application that enables tracking the status of each beneficiary under the scheme, resulting in expedited, accountable and better grievance redressal.

Note –

Odisha’s MAMATA Scheme has been offering conditional cash transfer of ₹5,000 as maternity benefit for up to two live births for more than a decade.
The predecessor scheme to PMMVY, the Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojana was applicable for two live births.