Financial Assistance to Dependent Children of Widows and Destitute Women (Chandigarh)

What is Financial Assistance to Dependent Children of Widows and Destitute Women?

Financial Assistance to Dependent Children of Widows and Destitute Women is a monthly cash scheme of the Department of Social Welfare, Women & Child Development, Chandigarh Administration. Its stated objective is to extend financial assistance to children who are fatherless, or whose parents, both mother and father: have died. The department pays Rs 1,000 per month per child, for up to two children in a family, with effect from 1 January 2016, to meet the cost of the child's maintenance and education.

The scheme is deliberately built on top of the Chandigarh widow pension. A mother who already draws assistance from the Social Welfare Department under the scheme of financial assistance to widows and destitute women: currently Rs 1,000 a month for eligible women aged 18 to 60 resident in Chandigarh for more than three years — can add her dependent children to this second scheme. In a household with two eligible children, the two schemes together bring Rs 3,000 a month into the home: Rs 1,000 for the mother and Rs 1,000 for each of two children.

Chandigarh's design closes an obvious gap. A widow pension keeps the mother afloat but does nothing for school fees, uniforms, books and the daily cost of raising a child. This scheme names those costs directly and attaches money to them.

Who is eligible for the child assistance in Chandigarh?

A child can be enrolled if:

• The child is a child of a widow or destitute woman and is under 18 years of age.
• The child has been deprived of parental support or care after a parent's death, or after continued absence from home.
• The mother is already getting pension from the Social Welfare Department under the scheme of financial assistance to widows and destitute women.
• The family is resident in UT Chandigarh for more than three years.
• The child is not in receipt of a family pension from any State or Central Government.
• Where both parents have died, a legal guardian applies on the child's behalf and receives the assistance.

A child is not eligible if:

• The child has been given institutional care by a government body or an NGO. Children living in such institutions cannot apply, since their maintenance is already met.
• The child is 18 years of age or older. The assistance stops on the eighteenth birthday.
• The child receives a family pension from any State or Central Government, for example on the death of a father who was a government employee.
• The mother is not drawing the Chandigarh widow or destitute women pension from the Social Welfare Department.
• The family cannot show three years of residence in UT Chandigarh.
• The child would be the third or later child in a family that already has two children enrolled, since the cap is two children per family.

How much money does the scheme pay?

• Rs 1,000 per month per child, with effect from 1 January 2016.
• Payable for a maximum of two children in one family.
• Maximum per family: Rs 2,000 per month.
• The money is meant for the cost of maintenance and education of the child.
• Assistance continues while the child remains under 18 and the family continues to meet the conditions.

What documents are required?

All documents are submitted as self-attested photocopies.

How to apply for the Chandigarh dependent children assistance

1. Confirm the mother's widow pension is running. If the mother is not yet on the Chandigarh scheme of financial assistance to widows and destitute women, apply for that first, this scheme depends on it.
2. Download the application form: "Form for The Financial Assistance To Dependent Children of Widows And Destitute Women"; from chdsw.gov.in in English or Hindi, or collect a printed copy from the department office at Sector 17-C.
3. Collect the child's Birth Certificate from the Registrar of Births & Deaths, and obtain the certificate from the head of the school, college or technical institution the child last attended.
4. Assemble residence proof of the last three years and the Aadhaar card of the widow mother, or of the legal guardian where both parents have died.
5. Fill the form for each eligible child, up to a maximum of two children in the family, and attach the self-attested photocopies.
6. Submit the file at the Department of Social Welfare, Women & Child Development, Additional Town Hall Building, 3rd Floor, Sector-17 C, Chandigarh 160017, and take an acknowledgement.
7. Follow up on 0172-2700372 or by email to dirswd-chd[at]nic[dot]in to track the sanction and the first credit.

How do I check the status of the application or the payment?

There is no separate online tracker for this scheme. The practical route is to quote the acknowledgement and the mother's existing widow pension details at the department office in Sector 17-C, or on the phone at 0172-2700372. Because the child's assistance is anchored to the mother's pension record, department staff can usually trace the case from the pension file even if the acknowledgement is mislaid.

Once sanctioned, the monthly payment is credited alongside the household's other social welfare payments. If a month is missed, check first that the mother's own widow pension is still running; a suspension there normally stops the child's assistance too.

Why do applications get rejected?

• Mother not on the widow pension roll, which breaks the eligibility link the scheme is built on.
• Child already 18 or turning 18 during processing.
• Family pension being received from a State or Central Government.
• Child in institutional care provided by a government body or an NGO.
• Residence proof short of three years in UT Chandigarh.
• Missing institution certificate, which the department requires because the assistance is tied to maintenance and education.
• A third child claimed in a family that already has two children enrolled.

Most rejections are documentary rather than substantive. A missing institution certificate or an incomplete residence proof can be supplied and the file revived; a family pension or institutional care, by contrast, is a substantive bar that cannot be cured.

Where do I complain or get help?

• Department of Social Welfare, Women & Child Development, Additional Town Hall Building, 3rd Floor, Sector-17 C, Chandigarh 160017
• Phone: 0172-2700372
• Email: dirswd-chd[at]nic[dot]in
• Women and Child Helpline: 181, or 9915023456, Sector-19B, Chandigarh
• Written grievances can be filed through "Lodge Your Grievances" on chdsw.gov.in

Applying is free. No fee is payable to any agent or middleman, and the department's own forms are downloadable at no cost from its website.