The Supreme Court has directed the Centre, states and Union Territories to continue extending benefits of the National Maternity Benefit Scheme (NMBS) to all pregnant women in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) section in the better interest of the future generation.
A bench headed by Justice Arijit Pasayat directed that the financial assistance amounting to Rs 500 per birth should be granted 8 to 12 weeks before the birth of the child. Delivering a judgement in the petition filed by the People's Union of Civil Liberties(PUCL), the bench said, “At this juncture, it would be necessary to take note of certain connected issues which are relevant. It appears from the scheme that beneficiaries are provided the benefit, irrespective of the number of children they have.”
The court also observed that this was against the concept of family planning, which was intended to curb population growth. The age of the mother was a relevant factor, as women below a particular age were legally prohibited from getting married. It called upon the Centre to consider this aspect while considering desirability of the continuation of the scheme. It also added that necessary amendments could be made. According to the judgement, 81152 women out of 28,9339 eligible women, amounting to 28 per cent in Karnataka, had benefited from the scheme.
The court also directed all the governments to file affidavits within eight weeks. The governments also have to indicate the total number of births in the state. Apart from this, they have to indicate the number of eligible BPL women who have received the benefits, number of women who have delivered at home or had non-institutional deliveries and received the benefits and number of BPL women who have received the benefits after undergoing institutional deliveries.
The court also directed all the state authorities to regularly advertise the revised scheme, so that beneficiaries were aware of it. It also called upon them to ensure that funds were not utilised for any other purpose. In case of diversion of funds, stringent actionwould be taken against the erring officials.
