Bhagwant Mann Government Gives Green Signal To “Mukham Mantri Mawan Dhian Satkar Yojana”

The Punjab Cabinet, led by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, cleared the way for the launch of the ‘Mukham Mantri Mawan Dhian Satkar Yojana’ across Punjab. Under this scheme, women belonging to the Scheduled Caste category will get Rs 1500 every month and all other women will get Rs 1000 as a stipend. More than 97 percent of women in Punjab will benefit from this scheme. This decision was taken during a cabinet meeting chaired by the Chief Minister.

Giving information in this regard, the Chief Minister’s Office said, “The Mukham Mantri Mawan Dhian Satkar Yojana will be launched across the state. Under this scheme, a monthly honorarium of Rs. 1500 will be given to women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Rs. 1000 to all other women. This scheme will make a significant contribution to the progress of women by making them independent and empowered. This scheme will strengthen women financially, which will enable them to save and invest and it will enable women to fulfill their desired desires for their home and family.”

He further said, “The Punjab government has already made unprecedented progress in the field of social welfare and human development; however, a large number of women across the state, especially women belonging to economically weaker families, face lack of financial security. Financial empowerment of women is of utmost importance to improve family welfare, promote gender equality and increase women’s participation in social and economic decision-making.”

Giving information about this initiative, the Chief Minister’s Office further said, “This scheme is likely to benefit more than 97 percent women, making it one of the most women friendly social security initiatives in the country. This scheme is a significant step towards ensuring direct financial assistance to women across the state and reflects the government’s vision towards ensuring financial independence for them under the empowerment of women.”

The scheme is designed to provide direct benefits, under which financial assistance will be transferred directly to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries. Under this scheme, there will be no restriction on the number of eligible women in a family and multiple women from the same family can avail the benefits of this scheme. Existing social security pensioners will also get full financial benefits in addition to their pensions under this scheme, which will increase its reach and effectiveness.

Women aged 18 years and above in Punjab, who are registered as voters, have Aadhaar card with Punjab domicile and a voter card issued by the Election Commission of India, will be eligible to register as beneficiaries under this scheme.

To ensure that the benefit of this scheme reaches every woman, the Bhagwant Mann government will make all possible efforts for wide outreach and registration, which includes completing documents for women, especially women from rural and backward areas, activating bank accounts and assisting women in ensuring smooth registration.

Further strengthening this initiative, an amount of Rs. 9,300 crore has already been approved in the budget for the financial year 2026-27 and given the scale and reach of the scheme, it is expected to be one of the largest women-friendly social welfare initiatives launched by the Punjab government.

Approval To Fill 70 Posts Under Direct Recruitment In Planning Department

The Cabinet has approved filling 70 posts under direct recruitment in Planning Department. The process of merger of Economic Policy and Planning Board and Statistics Department, Punjab has already started. In view of this exercise, the requirement of vacancies to be filled has been revised. Therefore, approval was given by the Committee of Officers to fill 70 posts through direct recruitment.

CMD Of PSPCL And PSTCL Amendment In The Conditions For Appointment Of Directors And Directors

The Cabinet has also approved the amendment in the “Qualifications and Experience Requirements for Appointment of Chairman-cum-Managing Directors (CMD) and Directors of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (Powercom) and Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited (Transco).

Approval To Appoint Manpower And Support Staff At Pachwara Coal Mine

The Cabinet also approved the appointment of manpower and support staff on contract basis by PSPCL for operation and maintenance of Pachwara Central Coal Mine (PCCM) in Pakur district of Jharkhand. For this, it was decided to constitute an authorized committee in which the Administrative Secretary, Chairman and Chairman-cum-Managing Director and Director/Generation, PSPCL will be included as members. This committee will be responsible for the operation and maintenance of Pachwara Central Coal Mine, Pakur. The Ministry was authorized to grant all approvals related to recruitment and extension of contract of competent manpower/support staff for maintenance.

Amendments In The Policy For Conversion Of Leasehold Industrial Plots Into Freehold

The Cabinet has also approved amendments in the policy for conversion of leasehold industrial plots/sheds into freehold. As per these amendments, industrial plots mortgaged with banks or financial institutions can be converted into freehold, provided that a ‘No Objection Certificate’ obtained from the concerned bank is submitted and prescribed security measures are followed. In this regard, a conversion fee of 5 per cent will be applicable in cases where there is no clause relating to unearned increase in the existing title documents, even if it is present in the earlier title documents.

Punjab Common Infrastructure (Regulation And Maintenance) (Amendment) Bill-2026

The Cabinet has approved the introduction of the Punjab Common Infrastructure (Regulation and Maintenance) (Amendment) Bill, 2026 to strengthen the effectiveness, transparency and financial sustainability of Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) for better management of industrial areas across the state. The proposed amendments will address the administrative and implementation challenges that have emerged over the years due to the expansion of industrial parks and expansion of new industrial clusters outside industrial estates. Under this, a streamlined system will also be developed for collection and utilization of service charges for maintenance of common infrastructure like roads, street lights, parks, security, drainage systems and other common amenities in industrial areas.

All industrial areas will be managed by SPVs. will be prepared which will be registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. These SPVs will work on a no-profit, no-loss basis for operation and maintenance of common infrastructure in industrial areas. Along with this, a District Monitoring Authority will be set up to monitor the functioning of the SPVs and provide an institutional mechanism for resolution of disputes.

Approval For Desilting Of River Sutlej For NHAI Projects

The Cabinet also approved relaxation in the conditions for desilting of river Sutlej to provide normal soil to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for construction of various highway projects in the state. This is part of various initiatives being taken by the Water Resources Department which includes digging long channels in major rivers across the state as an effort to manage rivers and reduce the risk of floods.