Executive Summary:
This document is a response to a parliamentary question regarding malpractices in social security schemes, particularly Women's Self-Help Groups (SHGs), answered on August 12, 2025. It outlines the steps taken by the Government to ensure transparency and accountability within the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) and reports that no malpractices have been identified in Women's SHGs, including those in Tamil Nadu.
Key Points / Main Content:
Monitoring and Review Mechanism:
* The Government has implemented a multilayered monitoring and review mechanism under DAY-NRLM to ensure transparency, accountability, and adherence to scheme guidelines.
* Regular Reviews with State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs): Quarterly reviews by senior officials to identify bottlenecks, deviations, and irregularities.
* Performance Review Committee (PRC) Meetings: National-level reviews with State Secretaries to monitor performance, compliance, and integrity.
* Monitoring through Management Information System (MIS): A centralized MIS captures real-time data from block and district levels for continuous tracking.
* Field Visits and Independent Monitoring: National Level Monitors, Common Review Missions, and Ministry officials conduct field visits to assess adherence to scheme norms.
* Third-Party Assessments and Evaluations: Independent organizations conduct periodic assessments to examine efficacy, transparency, and impact of SHG interventions.
Self-Regulatory Processes:
* Self-Regulation in Federations: SHG federations are trained to adopt self-regulation frameworks, including internal norms, standardized bookkeeping, risk monitoring, community audits, and sector-wide reporting.
* Participatory Community-Based Monitoring: SHG members and local stakeholders are capacitated to actively monitor progress and outcomes through participatory monitoring.
Malpractice Prevention:
* LokOS, a centralized MIS application, is used to ensure that each SHG member's Aadhaar number is unique, preventing duplicate memberships.
* No malpractices have been reported in Women's SHGs in any State or UT, including Tamil Nadu.
Impact Analysis:
State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs):
* Impact: SRLMs are subject to regular reviews and monitoring to ensure adherence to scheme guidelines and identify irregularities.
* Action Required: SRLMs need to participate in quarterly reviews, provide accurate data to the centralized MIS, and address any observations or recommendations from field visits.
SHG Federations:
* Impact: SHG federations are empowered through self-regulation frameworks to enhance transparency and accountability.
* Action Required: SHG federations must adopt and implement self-regulation frameworks, including internal norms, standardized bookkeeping, risk monitoring, community audits, and sector-wide reporting.
SHG Members and Local Stakeholders:
* Impact: SHG members and local stakeholders are capacitated to participate in monitoring progress and outcomes.
* Action Required: SHG members and local stakeholders should actively engage in participatory community-based monitoring activities.
Ministry of Rural Development:
* Impact: The Ministry oversees the monitoring and review mechanisms to ensure the integrity of the DAY-NRLM scheme.
* Action Required: The Ministry must continue to conduct national-level reviews, commission third-party assessments, and coordinate field visits to monitor scheme implementation.
Key Entities Referenced
Ministry of Rural Development: A government ministry responsible for rural development programs in India.
Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAYNRLM): A national mission focused on creating self-employment opportunities and improving livelihoods for the rural poor.
Women's Self-Help Groups (SHGs): Small, self-governed groups of women who pool their resources to address their socio-economic needs.
State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs): State-level agencies responsible for implementing the DAY-NRLM and managing SHGs.
Tamil Nadu: A state in southern India, specifically mentioned in relation to malpractices in SHGs.
National Level Monitors: Individuals appointed to monitor the implementation of schemes at the national level.
Common Review Missions: Teams that conduct periodic reviews of the scheme implementation across States/UTs.
LokOS: A centralised Management Information System (MIS) application launched by DAYNRLM to ensure unique membership in SHGs using Aadhaar numbers.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
DEPARTMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3851
ANSWERED ON 12/08/2025
WOMEN'S SELF-HELP GROUP
3851. Dr. M K Vishnu Prasad:
Will the Minister of RURAL DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:
(a) the steps taken by the Government to plug malpractices in
social security schemes particularly in Women’s Self-Help Group
schemes; and
(b) whether any malpractices identified in women’s self-help group
scheme during the last five years, State-wise including Tamil
Nadu, if so, the action taken in this regard?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
(DR. CHANDRA SEKHAR PEMMASANI)
(a): Under Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods
Mission (DAY–NRLM) the Government has instituted a multi-layered
monitoring and review mechanism to ensure transparency,
accountability, and adherence to scheme guidelines—particularly in
the implementation of social security components involving Women’s
Self-Help Groups (SHGs) through following steps :-
1. Regular Reviews with State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs):
Performance at the state level is reviewed quarterly by senior
administrative officials to identify bottlenecks, deviations from
guidelines, and any potential irregularities in scheme
implementation.
2. Performance Review Committee (PRC) Meetings: Reviews are
conducted at the national level with State Secretaries to monitor
performance, compliance, and integrity of implementation.
3. Monitoring through Management Information System (MIS): A
centralized MIS captures real-time data from the block and district
levels, enabling continuous tracking of implementation status.
Page 1 of 24. Field visits and Independent Monitoring: National Level Monitors,
Common Review Missions, and Ministry officials undertake regular
field visits to States/UTs. These visits assess on-ground adherence
to scheme norms. Observations and recommendations are shared
with concerned states for timely corrective action.
5. Third-party Assessments and Evaluations: Independent research
organisations are commissioned to conduct periodic assessments
and evaluations of scheme implementation. These studies examine
the efficacy, transparency, and impact of SHG interventions,
especially in the area of social security.
6. Further, since the mission works with the rural community, in
addition to the Standard Monitoring and regulatory provisions, the
following self-regulatory processes are facilitated to enable women
to become self-reliant and accountable:
(i) Self-Regulation in Federations: SHG federations are trained to
adopt self-regulation frameworks that include internal norms,
standardised bookkeeping, risk monitoring, community audits, and
sector-wide reporting. This type of internal control enhances
transparency, accountability, and trust with external institutions,
such as banks.
(ii) Participatory & Community-Based Monitoring: Drawing from
community participation, SHG members and local stakeholders are
capacitated and motivated to monitor progress and outcomes
actively. Approaches such as participatory monitoring—where locals
collect, analyse, and use data—help reinforce ownership and
relevance of the monitoring process
(b): DAY-NRLM program intends to reach out to all the eligible and
vulnerable households in the rural hinterland. The first step in the
program is to identify and mobilise the eligible households into SHGs.
The SRLMs carry out the mobilisation and formation of SHGs with the
support of the community resource persons (CRPs). To ensure that
the name of one member does not appear on more than one SHG,
LokOS, a centralised MIS application, is utilised. LokOS, launched by
DAY-NRLM, has a provision to identify each member of the SHGs
through their Aadhaar number and does not allow the entry of the
same Aadhaar number twice anywhere in the country, thus ensuring
100% unique members in the SHGs. Therefore, no malpractices have
been reported in Women's SHGs in all States and UTs, including in
Tamil Nadu.
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