Allowance to Dwarfs

What is the Allowance to Dwarfs in Haryana?

Allowance to Dwarfs is a social security allowance run by the Directorate of Social Justice and Empowerment under Haryana's Social Justice, Empowerment, Welfare of SC and BC and Antyodaya (SEWA) Department. The scheme pays a fixed monthly cash allowance to persons of short stature: commonly called baunapan or dwarfism in Haryana, who meet the height criteria the department has notified.

According to the Directorate of Social Justice and Empowerment, the scheme has been in force since 1 June 2006, when the allowance was Rs 300 per month. The rate has been revised repeatedly since. It stood at Rs 2,750 per month from 1 April 2023, rose to Rs 3,000 per month from 1 January 2024, and is Rs 3,200 per month with effect from 1 November 2025 following the department's across-the-board revision of social security pension rates.

Allowance to Dwarfs sits alongside the other Haryana social security allowances. The Old Age Samman Allowance, the Divyang Pension, the widow and destitute women pension and the Ladli Social Security Allowance, and is paid on the same monthly cycle through Direct Benefit Transfer into the beneficiary's own bank account.

Why the scheme exists

• Persons with dwarfism face restricted employment options and higher day-to-day costs for mobility, clothing and adapted household items.
• The height thresholds fixed by the Directorate correspond to what the department treats as a 60 percent disability, which is also the entry point for the Haryana Divyang Pension.
• The allowance gives an unconditional monthly income floor that does not depend on being in work.

Who is eligible for the Haryana dwarf allowance?

You can get the allowance if:

• You are a domicile of Haryana and have been residing in the state for at least one year before the date of application.
• You are 18 years of age or above on the date of application.
• Your measured height is 3 feet 8 inches or less for a male applicant, or 3 feet 3 inches or less for a female applicant.
• The Civil Surgeon of your district has issued a certificate confirming your height and dwarfism.
• You hold a Parivar Pehchan Patra (Family ID) and a bank account in your own name.

You cannot apply if:

• You are below 18 years of age. Families with a short-statured child under 18 should look instead at the Financial Assistance to Non-School Going Disabled Children scheme, which the same Directorate runs.
• Your measured height is above the notified limit. The Civil Surgeon's measurement is final for this purpose; a self-declaration or a private hospital letter is not accepted.
• You have not completed one year of residence in Haryana before applying.
• You are already drawing another Haryana social security pension such as the Divyang Pension or the Old Age Samman Allowance. Haryana pays one social security allowance per person.

Unlike the Old Age Samman Allowance and several other Haryana schemes, the Directorate's published page for Allowance to Dwarfs does not state a family income ceiling. Do not assume you are excluded on income grounds without confirming with the District Social Welfare Officer, and do not assume you are included either — the DSWO applies the current departmental instructions.

What documents are required for the dwarf allowance?

The Civil Surgeon certificate is the step that takes the longest. Book the medical board or Civil Surgeon appointment at your district civil hospital first, and only start the SARAL application once the certificate is in hand.

How to apply for the Allowance to Dwarfs online

1. Obtain the Civil Surgeon certificate of dwarfism from your district civil hospital, and check that your Parivar Pehchan Patra record shows correct age, address and bank details.
2. Open saralharyana.gov.in and register as a new user with your name, mobile number and email, then verify the OTP and sign in.
3. Select Apply for Services, then View All Available Services, and search for the Social Justice and Empowerment Department's allowance service for dwarfs.
4. Enter your Family ID, which auto-fills your verified personal details from the PPP database, and complete the remaining fields.
5. Upload the Civil Surgeon certificate, Aadhaar, residence proof, age proof and bank passbook in the sizes the form specifies.
6. Submit the form and save the SARAL reference ID shown on the acknowledgement, you will need it for every status check.

How to apply for the Allowance to Dwarfs offline

1. Visit your nearest SARAL Kendra or Atal Seva Kendra (CSC), or go directly to the District Social Welfare Office.
2. Ask the operator to fill the Allowance to Dwarfs application and hand over photocopies of the Civil Surgeon certificate, Family ID, Aadhaar, residence proof, age proof and bank passbook.
3. Sign the form, collect the printed acknowledgement with the SARAL reference ID, and keep it safely.
4. Follow up with the District Social Welfare Officer (DSWO) if the status has not moved for more than a month.

The DSWO is the sanctioning authority. Field verification is usually done by the Social Welfare Department staff or the local Panchayat/municipal office before the allowance is sanctioned.

How much is the dwarf allowance and when is it paid?

Allowance to Dwarfs pays Rs 3,200 per month with effect from 1 November 2025. Payment is made monthly by Direct Benefit Transfer into the beneficiary's Aadhaar-seeded bank account, in the same disbursement run as Haryana's other social security pensions.

Rate history published by the Directorate:

Revisions are notified by the SEWA Department and are usually given retrospective effect, so arrears for the months between the effective date and the first revised credit are paid along with a later instalment.

How to check your dwarf allowance status

1. Open saralharyana.gov.in and select Track Application Status.
2. Choose the Social Justice and Empowerment department, then enter your SARAL reference ID and submit.
3. Once the allowance is sanctioned, open pension.socialjusticehry.gov.in and use the beneficiary search with your pension ID, Aadhaar or Family ID to see each month's credit.
4. If a month shows as paid but the money has not reached you, take the transaction reference to your bank branch before approaching the DSWO.

Why dwarf allowance applications get rejected

• No Civil Surgeon certificate, or a certificate from a private hospital instead of the district Civil Surgeon.
• Height recorded above the notified limit in the certificate.
• Mismatch between the Family ID record and the application, a different date of birth, address or spelling of the name is the most common cause of a stalled file.
• Bank account not in the applicant's own name or not Aadhaar-seeded, so the DBT credit fails.
• Residence of less than one year in Haryana at the time of application.
• Another social security pension already active against the same Aadhaar.

Most of these are fixable. Correct the Family ID record first at a Citizen Resource Information Department update centre or through the PPP portal, then ask the DSWO to revive the file rather than filing a fresh application, which resets the queue.

Grievance route

• Directorate of Social Justice and Empowerment, SCO 20-27, Jeevandeep Building, 3rd floor, Sector 17-A, Chandigarh: phone 0172-2715090, email sje[at]hry[dot]nic[dot]in.
• District Social Welfare Officer in your district headquarters for sanction, verification and payment complaints.
• Antyodaya-SARAL grievance option on saralharyana.gov.in for delays in the online application itself.

Applying for the Allowance to Dwarfs is free. No official will ask for your OTP, and no middleman can charge you a fee to add your name to the beneficiary list.