In West Bengal, queues in front of local government offices are becoming more frequent. On February 5, West Bengal Finance Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya tabled the budget for the year 2026-27 in the State Assembly. The budget, months before the West Bengal Assembly poll, announced the new cash incentive for the unemployed youths of West Bengal, called the Banglar Yuba Sathi. In the Mondal family, Suman’s wife and mother also get a monthly allowance of ₹1,500 each under the West Bengal Lakshmir Bhandar scheme, which is a direct cash transfer social welfare scheme for women. This is a cash incentive scheme for women below 60 years in West Bengal.

Source: The Hindu February 23, 2026 11:12 UTC