Trinamool Congress Criticizes Lengthy Annapurna Bhandar Form Filling Process The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has launched a sharp critique of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government’s Annapurna Bhandar scheme in West Bengal, accusing it of imposing an overly complex 11-page form-filling process that undermines the accessibility of social welfare benefits. The criticism comes as the scheme, designed to provide monthly cash transfers of ₹3,000 to women, faces widespread skepticism over its bureaucratic hurdles. Congress State president Subhankar Sarkar wrote to Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, urging the government to simplify the process, which he argued is causing significant distress among beneficiaries. The Annapurna Bhandar scheme, set to roll out on June 1, requires applicants to submit extensive personal and family details, including citizenship status under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, whether names were removed during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, social status, vaccination records for children, literacy levels of family members, bank account information for all household members, health insurance status, and total land holdings. These requirements have sparked outrage, with critics arguing that the form’s complexity disproportionately affects illiterate and marginalized communities. TMC MLA Kunal Ghosh, in a social media post, accused the BJP of transforming social welfare into a conditional entitlement. “So the new @BJP4Bengal Minister’s logic is simple: If you didn’t take the vaccine provided by the Government of India, don’t bother seeking benefits from Government of India welfare schemes!!!” he wrote, highlighting the perceived hypocrisy of linking welfare access to vaccination compliance.#trinamool_congress #bharatiya_janata_party #suvendu_adhikari #kunal_ghosh #subhankar_sarkar
