Good news for citizens, Andhra Pradesh government has released Rs. 141.60 crore under YSR Kalyanamasthu Scheme and Jagananna Shaadi Tohfa Yojana on 9 August 2023. In both Kalyanamastu & Shadi Tohfa schemes, AP state govt will provide marriage assistance to poor girls from the SC, ST, OBC and minority communities, besides families of construction workers and disabled persons.
Jagananna Kalyanamasthu Scheme and Shadi Tohfa schemes are in line with Chief Minister's pre election promise. Read this article till the end to know about marriage scheme in AP.

Installment Transfer in YSR Kalyanamasthu / Shaadi Tohfa Scheme 2023

Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on 9th Aug 2023 (Wednesday) released ₹141.60 crore towards financial assistance to poor girls from the SC, ST, OBC and minority communities, besides families of construction workers and disabled persons, under YSR Kalyanamasthu and YSR Shaadi Tohfa schemes. In all, 18,883 girls, who got married between April-June 2023 would get the amount, which would be directly credited into the bank accounts of their mothers.

Under the scheme, SC, ST and minority beneficiaries would get ₹1 lakh each, the OBC beneficiaries would get ₹50,000. The differently abled would get ₹1.50 lakh and the families of construction workers would be given ₹40,000 each. Similarly, the incentives of SC and ST beneficiaries who opted for inter-caste marriage would get ₹1.20 lakh, the OBC beneficiaries would get ₹75,000 each for inter-caste marriages.

Releasing the amount into the accounts at the click of the mouse from his camp office at Tadepalli, the chief minister said the scheme was introduced to help girls from the poor SC, ST, BC, minority communities, construction worker families and the differently abled to pursue their education

“We’ve made it imperative for both the bride and groom to have at least completed their 10th class to be eligible [for the marriage]. Education is the primary means to break free from poverty,” the chief minister said, adding that it would enable parents to provide education for their children and facilitate marriages with honour.

CM said it would also help bring down the drop-out rate and increase enrolment ratio in schools and colleges. Reasserting that education is the panacea for driving away poverty and other ills from the society, Jagan said that the scheme also intends to prevent poor families from falling into debt trap.

Earlier Installment

Earlier on 5 May 2023, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy released Rs. 87.32 crore towards the YSR Kalyanamasthu and the YSR Shaadi Tohfa schemes to benefit 12,132 eligible girls who got married during  January to March quarter in 2023. The amount would be directly credited into the bank accounts of beneficiaries belonging to the SC, ST, BC, Minorities, disabled, and construction workers. 

Depositing the amount at the click of a button virtually at his camp office here, Reddy said that the scheme is not only meant to financially support the girls but also making Class X mandatory for implementation of the scheme which will change the mindset of the parents to educate their children. The implementation of Amma Vodi and Jagananna Vidya Deevena and Vasthi Deevena would usher in a revolution in the education sector in the State by drastically reducing the dropout rate in schools and increasing the enrolment. The government believes that education is the only weapon to eradicate poverty from society. 

Out of the total 12,132 beneficiaries identified for YSR Kalyanamasthu and Shaadi Tohfa schemes, as many as 5,929 beneficiaries are receiving Jagananna Vidya Deveena and Vasthi Deevenna schemes. In addition to the assistance provided now, within a span of six months 16,668 eligible girls benefited from the scheme and the government has credited Rs 125.50 crore directly into their accounts, CM said. Drawing a parallel with the previous TDP regime, the Chief Minister said that the earlier government has implemented the scheme ahead of elections but the YSRCP Government is implementing the scheme in full transparency with enhanced incentives. As many as 17,709 beneficiaries were left high and dry in 2018 as the TDP failed to credit Rs 70 crore. 

While SC, ST, BC, and Minority beneficiaries got Rs 40,000, Rs 50,000, Rs 35,000, and Rs 50,000 each during the TDP rule, the YSRCP Government hiked it to Rs 1,00,000, Rs 1,00,000 Rs 50,000, and Rs 1,00,000 respectively. While the differently abled people and construction workers received Rs 1,00,000 and Rs 20,000 each in the TDP rule, they will now get the hiked benefit of Rs 1,50,000 and Rs. 40,000  respectively. Similarly, the incentives of SC, ST, and BC beneficiaries who opted for inter-caste marriage went up to Rs. 1,20,000 from Rs. 75,000 each, to Rs. 1, 20,000 from Rs. 75,000 each, and to Rs. 75,000 from Rs. 50,000 each respectively. 

Last time on 10 February 2023, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy released Rs. 38.18 crore towards YSR Kalyanamasthu and YSR Shaadi Tohfa scheme. The financial assistance benefited 4,536 eligible girls who got married during October to December 2022. The amount is directly credited into the bank accounts of the beneficiaries belonging to SC, ST, BC, minorities, disabled and construction workers.

Objectives of YSR Kalyanamasthu / Shadi Tohfa Scheme

CM said YSR Kalyanamasthu and YSR Shaadi Tohfa coupled with Amma Vodi, Nadu-Nedu, Vidya Deevena, Vasathi Deevena, Jagananna Gorumuddha, would usher in a revolution in the education sector in the state. YSR Kalyanamasthu and YSR Shaadi Tohfa scheme scheme was launched to:-
  • Encourage education of children
  • Curb child marriages 
  • Increase enrolment ratio in schools 
  • Decrease dropout rates.
AP CM strongly believes that education is the greatest asset that we can give to our children. Eligibility condition that the brides and bridegrooms must have passed Class 10th to benefit from the scheme was imposed to encourage children among the weaker sections to pursue education. CM mentioned "Marriage can wait but education cannot because a society has no chance of success if its women are uneducated".

From next quarter, the amount would be credited into the bank accounts of the mothers of the eligible girls. CM said that it would encourage mothers to send their daughters to schools. He said that while the beneficiaries were left high and dry during the TDP regime which had withdrawn the financial assistance scheme from 2018 after failing to pay Rs. 68.68 crore to 17,709 beneficiaries, the YSRCP government is implementing the YSR Kalyanamasthu and YSR Shaadi Tohfa in full transparency with enhanced incentives.
 

AP YSR Kalyanamasthu / Shadi Tohfa Scheme 2023 Amount

Let's check the short brief on YSR Kalyanamasthu scheme and YSR Shadi Tohfa scheme:- 
CategoryPrevious Financial AidNew Financial Aid
SCRs. 40,000Rs. 1 lakh
SC IntercasteRs. 75,000Rs. 1.20 lakh
STRs. 50,000Rs. 1 lakh
ST IntercasteRs. 75,000Rs. 1.20 lakh
BCRs. 35,000Rs. 50,000
BC IntercasteRs. 50,000Rs. 75,000
MinoritiesRs. 50,000Rs. 1 lakh
Differently AbledRs. 1 lakhRs. 1.50 lakh
BOCWWBRs. 20,000Rs. 40,000
YSR Kalyanamasthu Scheme 2023 is for people from SC, ST, BC, Minority (other than Muslim) category people. It also includes differently abled girls and those from construction workers. For muslim girls, YSR Shadi Tohfa scheme will be implemented. With this, 98.44% of the poll promises have been implemented.

Eligibility Criteria for YSR Kalyanamastu Scheme

It is important to remind you that prescribed age limit must be followed to become eligible for YSR Kalyanamasthu scheme.
  • The age of bride should be atleast 18 years on the date of marriage.
  • Age of groom should be atleast 21 years on the date of marriage.

Features of AP Jagananna Kalyanamasthu Scheme

As per the government order issued on 10 September 2022, the following amount of financial assistance would be provided under YSR Kalyanamasthu scheme and Jagananna Shadi Tohfa Yojana.
  • For Scheduled Castes (SC), financial aid of Rs. 1,00,000 will be given under Jagananna Kalyanamasthu Scheme. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 40,000 on marriage of SC. 
  • On inter-caste marriage with a person from SC community, financial aid to be given is Rs. 1,20,000. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 75,000 on intercaste marriage of SC.
  • For Scheduled Tribes (ST), financial aid of Rs. 1,00,000 will be given under YSR Kalyanamasthu Scheme. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 50,000 on marriage of ST.
  • On inter-caste marriage with a person from ST community, financial aid to be given is Rs. 1,20,000. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 75,000 on intercaste marriage of ST.
  • For Backward Classes (BC), financial aid of Rs. 50,000 will be given under Kalyanamastu Scheme. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 35,000 on marriage of BC.
  • On inter-caste marriage with a person from BC community, financial aid to be given is Rs. 75,000. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 50,000 on intercaste marriage of BC.
  • For Minorities, an aid of Rs. 1,00,000 would be given. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 50,000 on marriage of minorities.
  • All the differently-abled persons would receive financial assistance of Rs 1.5 lakh. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 1,00,000 on marriage of differently abled.
  • For construction workers, the assistance provided would be Rs. 40,000. Previous govt. was paying Rs. 20,000 on marriage of construction workers.

AP YSR Kalyanamasthu Scheme Apply Online

The YSR Kalyanamasthu scheme would be implemented through village and ward secretariats. The application for Jagananna Kalyanamastu and Shadi Tohfa yojana will be invited through the link - https://gsws-nbm.ap.gov.in/NBM/Home/Main. Once you click this link, homepage of the Kalyanamasthu apply online website will open.
CM Jagan Mohan stated "The previous government failed to implement the scheme in its spirit and did not pay Rs 68.68 crore, citing one or the other reason. Though much publicity was given to the Pelli Kanuka scheme announced by the then chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, it was confined to papers only". The statement pointed out that the TDP government did not clear dues to 17,709 beneficiaries for 2018-19 under the scheme.

Alternate link to apply online for YSR Kalyanamasthu scheme - http://www.andhrabrahmin.ap.gov.in/schemes/wed_info.aspx