Sikkim Aama Sashaktikaran Yojana (Aama Yojana)

What is the Sikkim Aama Sashaktikaran Yojana?

Sikkim Aama Sashaktikaran Yojana: widely called simply Aama Yojana, from the Nepali word aama for mother: is a state welfare scheme of the Women, Child, Senior Citizen and Divyangjan Welfare Department, Government of Sikkim. It pays annual financial assistance of Rs 40,000 to eligible mothers, released in two instalments and credited by direct bank transfer through the State Bank of Sikkim.

According to the Information and Public Relations Department, Government of Sikkim, the scheme was notified in 2023 and is aimed at mothers who carry a household without a second earner. The published description of the target group is precise: non-working, unmarried, widowed, divorced or separated mothers between the ages of 18 and 59.

The scheme's scale has grown sharply. State figures record 15,833 mothers benefiting in 2022-23 and 31,768 in 2023-24. The plan for the expanded phase was to cover roughly 15,000 beneficiaries; that number was doubled to about 32,000, and in 2025-26 the scheme reached over 32,000 mothers.

The department also publishes, on its page on the Sikkim state portal, a list of beneficiaries availing benefits under the Aama Sashaktikaran Yojana (SASY) and a scheme notice for the year, the notice for 2024-25 appears there as "AAMA SCHEME 2024-2025". District Collectors have been appointed as District Officers for the department's schemes, which is why the district administrative centre is the working point of contact rather than a separate scheme office.

Who is eligible for the Aama Yojana in Sikkim?

You can be covered if:

• You are a mother and a resident of Sikkim.
• You are between 18 and 59 years of age.
• You are unmarried, widowed, divorced or separated.
• You are non-working. The scheme is directed at mothers without their own earned income.
• You have an operative bank account in your own name, since the money moves by direct bank transfer through the State Bank of Sikkim.

You are not eligible if:

• You are under 18 or 60 and above. The published age band closes at 59, and older women are covered by the state's old-age pension arrangements instead.
• You are in salaried employment. The scheme's stated target is non-working mothers.
• You are living with a spouse. The categories named in the scheme are unmarried, widowed, divorced and separated mothers.
• You are not a resident of Sikkim. Like other state schemes, benefits follow residence in the state.

A caution worth stating plainly: the Government of Sikkim has not published a detailed eligibility rulebook for this scheme on a public portal in the way it has for, say, the construction workers' welfare schemes. The criteria above are those the state has stated publicly. Anything finer — an income ceiling, the treatment of a mother whose children are adults, the exact proof of separation accepted: should be confirmed at the district office before you assemble papers.

How to apply for the Sikkim Aama Yojana

There is no online application portal for this scheme. Enrolment runs through the department and the district administration, and the annual scheme notice sets the cycle.

1. Watch for the year's scheme notice. The Women, Child, Senior Citizen and Divyangjan Welfare Department publishes it under Notifications, Circulars and Advertisements on its page on sikkim.gov.in, the 2024-25 notice is listed there as "AAMA SCHEME 2024-2025".
2. Approach the district administrative centre or the department office. District Collectors have been appointed as District Officers for the department's schemes, so the district office holds the working list and the forms for the year.
3. Assemble your proofs. Age, residence in Sikkim, marital status (unmarried, widowed, divorced or separated), proof that you are a mother, and your bank account details.
4. Submit the application and keep the acknowledgement. The acknowledgement is what you quote when you follow up on inclusion in the list.
5. Open or confirm a State Bank of Sikkim account in your own name. Payment is routed as a direct bank transfer through the State Bank of Sikkim, so a joint account in a husband's name or a dormant account is the most avoidable reason for a payment to fail.
6. Check the published beneficiary list. Once the department publishes the list of beneficiaries under SASY, verify that your name and details appear correctly.

When is the money paid?

The Rs 40,000 is paid in two instalments across the year. Since 2025 the first instalment has been tied to Aama Samman Diwas on 10 August, declared by a Home Department notification dated 30 July 2025 (letter no. 66/Home/2025) as an annual day dedicated to mothers. At the 2025 state-level function the first instalment was handed over to beneficiaries by cheque, alongside the honouring of 210 mothers selected from across the districts; among them ASHA workers, anganwadi workers, self-help group workers, panchayat representatives, mid-day meal cooks and safai mitras.

Mothers who have received the money describe using it for school and college fees, medical treatment, groceries and festival expenses, the state's own record of beneficiary accounts from Namchi, Pakyong, Kabi-Lungchok, Rongong-Tumlong and Regu Dara reflects that pattern of household use rather than any restricted purpose. There is no condition attached to how the money is spent.

How do I check my status or payment?

• Beneficiary list. The department publishes the list of beneficiaries availing benefits under the Aama Sashaktikaran Yojana on its page on sikkim.gov.in. Check that your name, age and district are correct.
• District office. The District Collector's office, as District Officer for the department, holds the working list and can tell you whether your application was included for the year.
• Bank. Because payment is a direct bank transfer through the State Bank of Sikkim, your branch passbook or statement is the fastest confirmation that the instalment has been credited.
• Department office. The Women, Child, Senior Citizen and Divyangjan Welfare Department is based in Gangtok and is the authority for the scheme.

Why do applications fail, and how do you fix it?

• Marital status not evidenced. The categories are specific, unmarried, widowed, divorced or separated. A separated mother without any document recording the separation is the hardest case; a certificate from the panchayat or urban local body is normally what the district office will look for.
• Age outside the 18-59 band. Applications from mothers who have crossed 59 fall outside the scheme; the state's old-age pension route applies instead.
• Bank account problems. An account not in the mother's own name, a dormant account, or a closed account stops a direct bank transfer even when the sanction is in place. Fix it with the branch before the instalment cycle.
• Name mismatch across documents. A different spelling on the age proof and the bank record is the commonest reason a credit bounces back.
• Applying outside the annual cycle. The scheme runs on a financial-year notice. An application handed in outside the notice period usually waits for the next round.

Is Aama Sahayog Yojana the same thing?

No, and the two are easy to confuse. Sikkim Aama Sahayog Yojana is a separate scheme, implemented by the Rural Management and Development Department, which provides four free LPG refills a year to over 4,200 mothers in rural areas. It runs alongside Aama Sashaktikaran Yojana and is distributed on the same occasion, but it is a different scheme with a different implementing department and a different benefit. The state also runs the Vatsalya Scheme, which supports couples undergoing IVF treatment, under the same broad women's welfare umbrella.

How do I raise a grievance?

Start at the District Collector's office, which acts as District Officer for the Women, Child, Senior Citizen and Divyangjan Welfare Department's schemes. Take the acknowledgement of your application, your identity and marital-status proofs and your bank passbook. If the district office cannot resolve it, the Women, Child, Senior Citizen and Divyangjan Welfare Department at Gangtok is the next authority; its scheme notices and beneficiary lists are the documents to quote. For a payment that has been sanctioned but not credited, take the published beneficiary entry to your State Bank of Sikkim branch first, since most such cases are account-level problems rather than sanction problems.