Karnataka to re-verify Gruha Lakshmi beneficiaries with biometric checks

Karnataka will re-verify all Gruha Lakshmi beneficiaries through biometric and facial checks from August 30. The month-long drive aims to remove ineligible recipients after reports of deaths, migration and changed tax status.Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. (PTI photo)The Karnataka government will carry out a fresh verification of beneficiaries under the Gruha Lakshmi Scheme through biometric and facial authentication to identify eligible recipients, officials said on Saturday. An order for the exercise was issued on August 28 after the government examined a proposal seeking Cabinet approval.The door-to-door re-verification will begin on August 30 and is to be completed within a month. According to the order, the exercise is aimed at removing beneficiaries who are currently ineligible from the scheme."In view of the matters explained in the proposal, administrative approval is hereby accorded for re-verification of beneficiaries registered under the Gruha Lakshmi Scheme through biometric/facial authentication to identify eligible beneficiaries," the government order said.It added that the process would be carried out through a web application and mobile application developed by the Directorate of Electronic Delivery of Citizens Services (EDCS). "Verification shall be carried out through door-to-door surveys as well as at Grama One, Karnataka One, Bengaluru One and CSC (Bapuji Seva Kendras)," the order said.The verification process, to be undertaken within a grant limit of Rs 20 crore, will be carried out in line with the Standard Operating Procedure approved by Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. The Department of Women and Child Development has been asked to oversee the re-verification process, while the e-Governance Department will provide technical and operational support.Under the SOP, beneficiaries will be visited at their homes and given printed enumeration forms to fill and return. If a beneficiary is not present, another family member can fill out the form.The government has made household visits, distribution and collection of enumeration forms mandatory, saying visits cannot be avoided even if the required information is available through other sources or verification methods.Enumerators will use a designated mobile application with village-wise and urban-area-wise lists of Gruha Lakshmi beneficiaries.Photographic evidence will be captured against the beneficiary's name during the visit, and the application will automatically record the GPS coordinates of the beneficiary's residence.The SOP says beneficiaries who are not available during the household visit and cannot complete facial authentication will be informed through multiple communication channels and asked to complete biometric authentication at their assigned Fair Price Shop or the nearest Karnataka One, Grama One or Bengaluru One centre.The government has also decided to use biometric authentication data already collected at Fair Price Shops. For the exercise, Deputy Commissioners and Chief Executive Officers of Zilla Panchayats have been directed to mobilise existing Guarantee Committee members and identify the required number of enumerators.Officials said the Congress government introduced the Gruha Lakshmi Scheme as part of its five guarantee schemes to improve the economic empowerment of women in the state.Under the scheme, Rs 2,000 is given every month to the woman head of the household, in line with the government order dated June 6, 2023, and the scheme guidelines dated July 17, 2023.The proposal for re-verification said that since the scheme began in August 2023, 32 instalments of financial assistance have been paid to 1.24 crore beneficiaries, with expenditure so far at Rs 76,951.13 crore.It said several cases had been reported over the past three years involving beneficiaries who had died or migrated, and cases where beneficiaries or their husbands had started filing income-tax and GST returns, making an overall re-verification of all registered beneficiaries necessary.- EndsPublished By: India Today Web Desk Published On: Aug 29, 2026 20:35 IST