All pregnant women in India are entitled to maternity benefits, but most of them have not got a single rupee in recent years

Maternity Benefits Issues Under NFSA

• Legal Entitlement: National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 entitles all pregnant women (except those in the formal sector) to ₹6,000 per child as maternity benefits.
  • The principle of universal maternity entitlements was a landmark provision of the NFSA.
• Inadequate amount: Adjusted for inflation, this amount should be at least ₹12,000 today, though still inadequate. 
• Implementation Challenges:  Benefits remain undelivered despite legal provisions.
  • Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY):
    • Restricts benefits to one child per family, now extended to a second child if a girl—violating NFSA.
    • Amount reduced to ₹5,000 for the first child without justification.
• Double Standards: The formal sector provides 26 weeks of paid leave under the Maternity Benefits Act, 2017, while the unorganised sector offers ₹5,000 under PMMVY, but faces complex hurdles in access.

Issues with Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY)

• Lack of Transparency: The Ministry of Women and Child Development provides limited data on PMMVY. Violates Section 4 of the RTI Act, which mandates proactive disclosure of basic information. 
  • Key statistics, including beneficiary numbers, remain unavailable to the public.
• Declining Coverage: RTI-based estimates reveal a drop in effective coverage (women receiving at least one instalment):
  • 2019-20: Peak at 36%.
  • 2023-24: Sharp decline to 9%.
• Associated Conditionalities: Conditionalities on the second instalment further limit benefits.
• Budget Cuts: Central government spending on PMMVY:
  • 2018-19: Much higher than recent years.
  • 2023-24: Dropped to ₹870 crore, just one-third of the amount five years ago.
• Underfunded: To cover 90% of births with ₹6,000 per child, the PMMVY budget should be ₹12,000 crore, yet remains grossly underfunded.

Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) in Tamil Nadu and Odisha

• Higher Support: Tamil Nadu and Odisha provide higher maternity support, with Odisha offering ₹10,000 per child (doubled before 2024 elections) and Tamil Nadu providing ₹18,000 (DMK promised ₹24,000 in 2021).
  • PMMVY remains stagnant at ₹5,000, falling below NFSA norms.
• Better Implementation: Odisha covered 64% of births (2021-22), Tamil Nadu achieved 84% coverage (2023-24), while PMMVY lags with below 10% coverage nationwide.

Conclusion

PMMVY has failed due to budget cuts and poor implementation, violating NFSA provisions. It requires revamping and inflation indexing, as investing in maternal support benefits society as a whole.