Chandigarh, Sep 16 (IANS) Haryana Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi on Tuesday said the government has transferred Rs 1.06 lakh crore through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) schemes, revolutionising welfare distribution by ensuring timely, transparent, and efficient delivery to millions of citizens.

This milestone underscores the state’s commitment to curbing leakages and enhancing accountability, with significant reductions in ghost beneficiaries and duplication.

He shared this information while presiding over the fourth meeting of the Advisory Board on DBT here.

The Chief Secretary directed the Nodal Officers to regularly update beneficiary data on the state DBT portal and ensure seamless integration of Parivar Pehchan Patra (PPP) and Aadhaar details so as to enhance efficiency, accuracy, and transparency in service delivery.

The Chief Secretary said the core of Haryana’s DBT success lies in its pursuit of efficiency and accountability within government systems. This strategic approach has not only expedited the transfer of benefits to eligible citizens but has also significantly curtailed the historical problem of leakages and duplicate payments.

A substantial number of 36.75 lakh potential ghost, fake, or duplicate beneficiaries have been identified and removed from the system, translating into tangible savings for the state exchequer.

Since 2014-15, actual savings attributed to DBT have amounted to an impressive Rs 1,182.22 crore, with cumulative notional savings reaching Rs 10,187.13 crore by the end of the last fiscal year.

The meeting was informed that as of now, 26 departments have uploaded 156 DBT schemes on the state DBT portal.

Of these, 96 are state schemes and 60 are Centrally-sponsored schemes.

In 2024-25 alone, a significant Rs 17,824.10 crore was transferred to 2.78 crore beneficiaries through 14.82 crore transactions, demonstrating the state’s proactive stance on leveraging technology and a robust policy framework to ensure effective governance.

The Additional Chief Secretary (Social Justice) G. Anupama, Principal Secretary (Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs) D Suresh, Commissioner and Secretary (Finance) Mohammed Shayin and senior officers of various departments were present at the meeting.

–IANS

vg/svn