Andaman & Nicobar Islands Allowance to Destitute Women Scheme

What is the Allowance to Destitute Women Scheme?

Allowance to Destitute Women Scheme is a monthly cash assistance run by the Directorate of Social Welfare, Andaman & Nicobar Administration, for the poorest and most isolated women in the islands. The scheme pays Rs 2,500 per month directly into the beneficiary's bank account.

According to the Directorate's Citizen Charter, the entry reads: "Destitute Allowances provided @ Rs. 2500/- per month from April 2018 onwards." The same charter names the Welfare Officer (Women) as the officer responsible for disposal, sets a time frame of 45 days, and makes the Director (Social Welfare) the appellate officer.

The Directorate describes itself as the nodal authority for providing assistance to the marginalised population of the islands. Destitute Allowance is one of four cash allowances it runs as UT schemes, alongside Old Age Pension, Widow Pension and Disability Allowance, all of which currently sit at the same Rs 2,500 monthly rate for the standard category. Old Age Pension rises to Rs 3,000 a month above the age of 80.

Who is eligible for the destitute women allowance?

You can claim if:

• You are a woman resident in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• You have been a permanent resident of the islands for more than 10 years at the time of making the application. A Revenue Authority not below the rank of Tehsildar certifies this on the form itself.
• Your household income does not exceed Rs 4,000 per month, that is Rs 48,000 a year, certified by the same Revenue Authority.
• You are in a genuinely destitute situation. The Directorate's published beneficiary list shows the profile the scheme reaches in practice: women recorded as separated or unmarried and unemployed, spread across Port Blair, Diglipur, Rangat, Mayabunder, Long Island and other islands, with ages running from the late twenties into the seventies.
• You hold a bank account in your own name for the monthly credit.

You are not eligible if:

• You are already receiving a government pension or assistance, an Old Age Pension, a Widow Pension, a Disability Allowance or similar support from government, local bodies or autonomous bodies. Item 12 of the application form requires this to be declared.
• Your household income exceeds Rs 4,000 a month.
• You have lived in the islands for 10 years or less.
• You cannot obtain the Tehsildar's certificate of residence and income, which is printed on the application form and is not optional.
• The claim is made on behalf of a man; this specific allowance is for destitute women, and men in need are directed to the Old Age Pension or Disability Allowance depending on circumstances.

The certificate block on the form also asks the Revenue Authority to record the immovable property owned by the applicant; house and lands, so a substantial property holding is a practical obstacle even though no separate ceiling is printed.

What documents are required?

The affidavit is the requirement most often missed. The Citizen Charter lists it against Destitute Allowance but not against Old Age Pension or Widow Pension, so an applicant working from a neighbour's experience of those schemes may not know to prepare one.

How to apply for the Allowance to Destitute Women

1. Collect the application form. The Directorate's common "Application for grant of financial assistance" form is available free of cost at the Directorate of Social Welfare, Goalghar, Sri Vijaya Puram (Port Blair), and at the sub-divisional offices of Child Development Project Officers. It can also be downloaded from andssw1.and.nic.in/socialwelfare.
2. Tick option (c), Destitute Allowance, at item 1 of the form, which is shared with Old Age Pension, Widow Pension and Disability Allowance.
3. Fill in every field: your name, father's or husband's name, sex, marital status, date of birth, present address, employment registration number if any, category (APL or BPL), social category, details of any assistance already received from government or local bodies, bank account number, Aadhaar number, and a table of family members with age and occupation.
4. Get the Revenue Authority certificate signed by an officer not below the rank of Tehsildar. The printed certificate confirms that you are a permanent resident of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands for more than 10 years and that your household income does not exceed Rs 4,000 per month, and records the immovable property you own.
5. Prepare the affidavit stating your eligibility for the allowance, and attach your residence or domicile certificate or Islander Identity Card and an attested copy of your bank pass book.
6. Submit the completed form with all enclosures at the office of the Child Development Project Officer for your area. Applicants in Sri Vijaya Puram may submit directly at the Directorate of Social Welfare, Goalghar.
7. Follow up after 45 days, the time frame the Citizen Charter allows for disposal, with the Welfare Officer (Women).

Where are the CDPO offices?

The Directorate runs its Integrated Child Development Services through five projects, and these are the offices that receive destitute allowance applications:

• Urban Project, Sri Vijaya Puram (Port Blair)
• Rural Project, Ferrargunj
• Rural Project, Rangat
• Rural Project, Diglipur
• Tribal Project, Nicobar

Applicants living in the outer islands should route the application through the project office covering their area rather than travelling to Port Blair. The Directorate's own beneficiary list under this scheme includes women resident in Diglipur, Rangat, Long Island, Mayabunder, Harinagar and Janakpur, so the outer island route demonstrably works.

How do I check the status of my application?

There is no public online status tracker for this allowance. The practical routes are:

1. Ask the CDPO office where you submitted the form, quoting the date of submission and your name. The 45-day disposal standard in the Citizen Charter gives you a clear point at which to follow up.
2. Contact the Directorate of Social Welfare at Goalghar, Sri Vijaya Puram — 03192 233356, or by email at director-sw@and.nic.in.
3. Check the Directorate's published Destitute Allowance beneficiary list on andssw1.and.nic.in/socialwelfare, which sets out beneficiary names, parentage, address, age, gram panchayat, whether annual income is below Rs 48,000, marital status and employment status.

If the 45 days have passed with no decision, the Director (Social Welfare) is the appellate officer named in the Citizen Charter.

What are my duties after the allowance is sanctioned?

Two obligations follow sanction and both carry consequences.

First, you must inform the Director of Social Welfare within 15 days of any change in your address or in your employment status. A destitute woman who takes up paid work, or moves in with earning family members, is expected to report it.

Second, failure to report such a change can result in recovery of the allowance already paid, treated as arrears of land revenue. That is a coercive recovery mechanism, so it is worth reporting a change early rather than waiting for the Directorate to discover it.

Why destitute allowance applications get rejected

• Income certificate above the ceiling, or a certificate issued by an officer below the rank of Tehsildar.
• Residence short of 10 years, or a domicile document that does not establish the period.
• Affidavit not filed. The requirement unique to this allowance among the Directorate's four cash schemes.
• Applicant already drawing another government pension or assistance, disclosed at item 12 or discovered on verification.
• Bank pass book not attested, or the account not in the applicant's own name.
• Aadhaar number missing at item 14.
• Form submitted at the wrong office, delaying rather than defeating the claim.

Most rejections here are documentary rather than substantive. A woman who is genuinely destitute and has lived in the islands for decades usually needs only to go back to the Tehsildar for a properly worded certificate and to swear the affidavit.

What related help does the Directorate provide?

Women who do not qualify for this allowance, or who need more than money, should know the rest of the Directorate's provision. It runs a Working Women Hostel, a Swadhar Greh, a Home for Orphan Girls, a Vocational and Rehabilitation Centre, an Old Age Home at Ferrargunj, a One Stop Centre and a Mahila Shakti Kendra. Admission to the residential homes is dealt with in the same Citizen Charter, generally within five days, on production of a residence or domicile certificate, age proof, a medical certificate of freedom from infectious or communicable disease, and a parental income certificate where relevant.

The Directorate also implements the centrally sponsored Anganwadi Services, Poshan Abhiyaan, the Scheme for Adolescent Girls, Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao and Child Protection Services.

Helplines and grievance redressal

The Directorate of Social Welfare publishes the following help-lines for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands:

• Directorate of Social Welfare, Goalghar, Port Blair 744101 to 03192 233356, director-sw@and.nic.in
• Local Women Help-Line: 9531829006 (24x7)
• Universal Women Helpline: 181 (24x7)
• National Women Helpline: 1091 (24x7)
• CHILDLINE: 1098 (24x7, for children in need of care and protection)
• Wellness Centre Crisis Response: 3195 or 230504 to 24x7 counselling and para-legal services for women in distress, victims of domestic violence, sexual harassment and abuse. Available on landline only.

For a decision on the allowance itself, the escalation path is the Welfare Officer (Women) who handles disposal, and then the Director (Social Welfare) as appellate officer.

The application form is supplied free of cost. No fee is payable to any agent for filling it in, and no official will ask for a share of the monthly allowance.