Grant of Incentive to the Family having One Girl / Two Girl Children and Parents who have undergone Family Planning, Puducherry

What is the Grant of Incentive to the Family having One Girl / Two Girl Children?

Grant of Incentive to the Family having One Girl / Two Girl Children and Parents who have undergone Family Planning is a scheme of the Department of Women and Child Development, Government of Puducherry. The scheme places a fixed deposit in a girl child's name, which she receives with accrued interest when she turns 18.

The scheme was notified by G.O. Ms. No. 3/2004-Wel. (SW-IV) dated 30 January 2004 and published in the Extraordinary Gazette of Pondicherry No. 1 dated 9 February 2004. It has been amended at least twice since:

• G.O. Ms. No. 42/2005 extended the scheme from one girl child to two girl children, raised the deposit from Rs 14,762 to Rs 15,000 for one girl (Rs 7,500 each for two girls), and required that the girl child be born on or after 1 April 2005.
• G.O. Ms. No. 14/2007 dated 29 March 2007 raised these figures to Rs 20,000 for one girl child and Rs 10,000 for each of two girl children, and formally renamed the rules to cover one girl or two girl children.

The national myScheme portal currently lists the amount as Rs 30,000, indicating a further revision beyond the 2007 gazette. Because the department's own published rules stop at Rs 20,000, applicants should ask the Deputy Director (Women Development) to confirm the current sanctioned figure before applying.

The stated objective in the rules is "to create awareness among the parents about the desirability of having girl children and to raise the status of girl children in families". The scheme aims at small family norms and at preparing parents "to realise the value of girl children and treat them as an asset".

Two features define the scheme and are often misunderstood. First, the money is not paid to the parents. It is deposited in the girl's name and locked until she is 18. Second, sterilisation of one parent is compulsory, which makes this a family planning incentive as much as a girl-child scheme.

Who is eligible for the Puducherry girl child incentive?

You can apply if:

• Your family; husband and wife, has only one girl child, or only two girl children, and no son or any other issue.
• Either parent has undergone sterilisation — vasectomy, tubectomy or another family planning measure approved by the government, in a Central or State Government hospital or clinic. A private hospital operation is accepted if the certificate is countersigned by a Medical Officer or Civil Surgeon of a government hospital.
• The annual income of the family from all sources does not exceed Rs 60,000, as set in the gazette rules.
• The father was at least 21 and the mother at least 18 years old, and neither was above 45 years, as on the date of marriage.
• Either parent is a native of Puducherry by birth, or has resided continuously in the Union Territory for not less than five years, and the parents are citizens of India.
• The marriage of the parents is registered with the Registration Department, municipality or commune panchayat.
• The girl child was born on or after 1 April 2005. Where there are two girl children, the second child's birth must also be on or after that date.

You are not eligible and cannot apply if:

• The family has a son, or any issue other than the one or two girl children.
• Neither parent has undergone sterilisation, or the sterilisation certificate is from a private hospital without countersignature by a government Medical Officer.
• The annual family income exceeds the prescribed ceiling.
• The parents were outside the prescribed age range on the date of marriage.
• Neither parent has Puducherry nativity and neither has completed five years of continuous residence.
• The marriage is unregistered.
• The girl child was born before 1 April 2005.

An important exception is written into the rules: if the first child born was male and died subsequently, the next female child or two female children remain eligible, provided the other conditions are satisfied.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the girl child incentive in Puducherry

1. Obtain the sterilisation certificate from the government hospital or clinic where the operation was performed. If the operation was done privately, get the certificate countersigned by a Medical Officer or Civil Surgeon of a government hospital.
2. Collect the income and nativity certificate in Form-II from an officer of the Revenue Department not below the rank of Deputy Tahsildar.
3. Obtain the Form-III certificate from your Member of Parliament, Member of the Legislative Assembly, the Commissioner of the municipality or commune panchayat, or a Tahsildar or Deputy Tahsildar, certifying that you have only one girl child or only two girl children and no other issue.
4. Collect the birth certificates of the girl child or children and your own marriage certificate and age proofs.
5. Fill in the application in Form-I, the form appended to the rules, available at the Department of Women and Child Development.
6. Submit the application to the Deputy Director (Women Development), Department of Women and Child Development, Puducherry; the Child Development Project Officer, Karaikal; or the Welfare Officer, Mahe or Yanam, depending on your region.
7. Collect the acknowledgement, and once the deposit is made, collect the copy of the deposit receipt. The rules state that a copy of the deposit shall be given to the parent for evidential record.

How much is deposited and when is it released?

The deposit is placed in a bank or a suitable post office scheme in the name of the girl child, in joint account with the Director of Women and Child Development for the Puducherry region, the Child Development Project Officer for Karaikal, or the Social Welfare Organiser for Mahe and Yanam. It is kept in the treasury of the respective region until maturity.

The maturity value is given to the girl child only when she attains the age of 18 years. The mother is the guardian of the minor's account; if the mother predeceases, the father becomes guardian, and if neither is alive, the legal guardian holds the account.

Sanction is made in order of seniority of receipt of applications, subject to availability of funds under the scheme. The department's own scheme sheet notes that "the selection is periodical and depends on the availability of funds", so an eligible application may wait for the next sanction cycle.

How do I check the status of my application?

1. Keep the acknowledgement number issued at the time of submission.
2. Contact the Deputy Director (Women Development) in Puducherry, the CDPO in Karaikal or the Welfare Officer in Mahe or Yanam.
3. Ask whether the file has cleared verification of the sterilisation certificate and the Form-III certificate. The two documents most often queried.
4. If verification is complete, ask which sanction batch your application falls into, since selection is periodical.
5. Once sanctioned, ask for the copy of the fixed deposit receipt, which the rules entitle you to.

Why applications for this incentive get rejected

• Sterilisation certificate from a private hospital without the required countersignature from a government Medical Officer or Civil Surgeon.
• A son in the family, or another issue besides the one or two girl children.
• Girl child born before 1 April 2005, which the 2005 amendment excludes.
• Income certificate showing more than the prescribed ceiling.
• Marriage not registered, so no marriage certificate can be produced.
• Parents' ages outside the prescribed band as on the date of marriage.
• Form-III certificate missing or issued by an authority below the prescribed rank.
• Residence condition not met: neither parent a native of Puducherry nor resident for five continuous years.

Where do I complain if the deposit is not made?

• Director, Department of Women and Child Development, Puducherry: 0413-2244785, email wcd[at]py[dot]gov[dot]in.
• Karaikal: the Child Development Project Officer.
• Mahe and Yanam: the Welfare Officer or the Regional Administrator.
• CPGRAMS at pgportal.gov.in for a written grievance.

The application is free at every stage. The rules provide for the department to maintain separate registers and periodicals for the scheme and to furnish quarterly and annual reports, so a file that has genuinely been received should always be traceable.