Vodafone India ties up with Madhya Pradesh for mobile-based disbursements under government program

NEW DELHI: Vodafone India announced its partnership with the Madhya Pradesh government to facilitate mobile-based disbursement of financial assistance to mothers under the Janani Suraksha Yojana scheme.

The initiative, which has been activated through Vodafone's mobile money transfer scheme and payment service, the Vodafone M-Pesa has been running in pilot stage in Vidisha since May 2015 and is now fully ready.

The payment of health care subsidies under Janani Suraksha Yojana Scheme aims at reducing the neo-natal and maternal deaths in India by promoting institutional delivery of children.
This scheme is operated under National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) of government of India. Vodafone said its M-Pesa service had been identified as the most suitable partner to facilitate digital transfer of financial disbursements for this scheme.

"The beneficiaries, with any active mobile number can directly receive payment of the subsidy," the company said through a statement, explaining the procedure for transfer of funds.

Once the payment is made, the recipients will be intimated via SMS, mentioning the amount of subsidy, the withdrawal code and the withdrawal procedure. "They can then withdraw the subsidy amount by simply authorizing the transaction with the withdrawal code at a nearby Vodafone M-PESA retail outlet," the statement added.

Suresh Sethi, business head of M-Pesa, Vodafone India through the statement said, "We are delighted to partner with the government of Madhya Pradesh in reducing maternal and neonatal mortality".