Government schemes for women in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, ₹2,500 pensions and a new home stay scheme

Also called Widow Pension Andaman, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Widow Pension Scheme, ANIWPS, Vidhwa Pension Andaman, Widow allowance A&N

₹2,500 a month, paid into her bank account

A monthly allowance of ₹2,500 from the A&N Administration for poor widows of the islands, paid straight into her bank account. It is for a widow with very low income who has lived in the islands for more than 10 years.

Status

Paid every month in 2026 at ₹2,500, the rate set from April 2018; the Directorate of Social Welfare still lists it as a UT scheme and takes new applications through the CDPO offices (checked 25 October 2026).

Who can apply

• A widow: her husband has died, or has been declared dead by a court, or nobody knows where he is for more than 7 years
• Permanent resident of the A&N Islands, or living in the islands continuously for more than 10 years
• Her income is below ₹48,000 a year (₹4,000 a month), certified by the Revenue Authority
• The allowance stops if she remarries or moves out of the islands for good

Documents

• Residence, domicile or local certificate, or Islander Identity card
• Bank passbook, attested
• Monthly income certificate from the Revenue Authorities
• Husband's death certificate, or a court certificate if his whereabouts are not known for more than 7 years
• Filled application form

How to apply

1. Get the free application form from the Directorate of Social Welfare, Goalghar, Sri Vijaya Puram, or your CDPO office
2. Attach the documents and hand the form in at the CDPO office for your area (Urban at Dollygunj, Ferrargunj, Rangat, Diglipur or Car Nicobar)
3. The Mukhya Sevika checks your case; the Directorate decides within about 45 days
4. Once paid, give a life certificate every year through your Anganwadi worker, or the payment stops

In person: CDPO office (Urban Dollygunj, Ferrargunj, Rangat, Diglipur, Car Nicobar) or Welfare Officer (Women), Directorate of Social Welfare, Goalghar, Sri Vijaya Puram

Run by

Directorate of Social Welfare, Andaman and Nicobar Administration

The income limit is on her own income, not the family's. If she already gets another pension from a government body, the allowance can be cut, so tell the CDPO. Leaders asked in 2025 for ₹5,000 a month, but no increase had been ordered by October 2026.

Checked 25 October 2026 against Kalyan Darpan, Quarterly Newsletter (1st Edition), April 2025: Social Security Pensions, Citizen Charter (Social Welfare section): Widow Pension, MP Bishnu Pada Ray Urges Doubling of Social Security Allowances in A&N Islands (news, status only) · Official page to apply

Also called Destitute Allowance Andaman, Destitute Women Pension Andaman, Destitute Pension, ANIADWS, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Allowance to Destitute Women Scheme

₹2,500 a month, paid into her bank account

A monthly allowance of ₹2,500 for destitute women of the A&N Islands who have no means to support themselves. It is for women with very low income who have lived in the islands for at least 10 years.

Status

Paid every month in 2026 at ₹2,500, the rate set from 1 April 2018; still listed as a UT scheme by the Directorate of Social Welfare, with applications through the CDPO offices (checked 25 October 2026).

Who can apply

• A destitute woman with no one to support her
• Living in the A&N Islands continuously for at least 10 years (local certificate or resident identity card)
• Her income is below ₹48,000 a year; the allowance stops if her income goes above ₹4,000 a month or she stops being a resident

Documents

• Residence, domicile or local certificate, or Islander Identity card
• Bank passbook, attested
• Monthly income certificate from the Revenue Authorities
• Affidavit stating why you are eligible
• Filled application form

How to apply

1. Get the application form from the Directorate of Social Welfare, Goalghar, Sri Vijaya Puram, or your CDPO office
2. Make an affidavit stating why you are eligible and attach the other documents
3. Hand the form in at the CDPO office for your area; the Directorate decides within about 45 days
4. Give a life certificate every year through your Anganwadi worker so the payment continues

In person: CDPO office (Urban Dollygunj, Ferrargunj, Rangat, Diglipur, Car Nicobar) or Welfare Officer (Women), Directorate of Social Welfare, Goalghar, Sri Vijaya Puram

Run by

Directorate of Social Welfare, Andaman and Nicobar Administration

The official pages that could be read do not spell out who counts as destitute, so ask the CDPO or the Welfare Officer (Women) before you collect papers. If your income rises above ₹4,000 a month you must tell the Directorate within 15 days, or the money can be recovered from you.

Checked 25 October 2026 against Kalyan Darpan, Quarterly Newsletter (1st Edition), April 2025: Destitute Pension, Citizen Charter (Social Welfare section): Destitute Allowances · Official page to apply

Also called Sarathini, Sarthini, Sarthini scheme Andaman, Free driving training for women Andaman

Free training to drive a car (light motor vehicle)

Free car driving training for women, so they can work as drivers or start a driving business. Women from Scheduled Tribe, BPL, Self Help Group and MGNREGA families get first preference.

Status

Batches ran in Swaraj Dweep and North and Middle Andaman from August to September 2025; the form is still on the Transport Department site, but no 2026 batch had been announced when checked on 25 October 2026.

Who can apply

• Women only
• Preference for Scheduled Tribe women, BPL families, Self Help Group members, and families with 35 or more days of MGNREGA work
• Training places: Sri Vijaya Puram, Swaraj Dweep, Little Andaman, North and Middle Andaman, and Nicobar District

Documents

• Aadhaar
• Proof of ST, BPL, SHG or MGNREGA status, if you have it
• One passport size photo
• Learner's licence, if you have one
• MGNREGA job card, if you have one

How to apply

1. Watch for a new batch notice from the Transport Department
2. Fill the SARATHINI form and pick your nearest training place
3. Hand it in with self-attested copies at the Directorate of Transport, Sri Vijaya Puram

In person: Directorate of Transport, Sri Vijaya Puram, or SBI RSETI, Sri Vijaya Puram

Run by

Transport Department, Andaman and Nicobar Administration, with SBI RSETI

No place to stay is given, so you must travel to the training centre yourself. The last news of a batch is from September 2025; call the Transport Department before you travel.

Checked 25 October 2026 against Application form for SARATHINI, Free LMV Driving Training Scheme for Women, Transport Department home page (notice dated 20 August 2025), A&N Administration Launches SARTHINI Scheme (news, status only), SARTHINI Scheme for Women's LMV Driving Training Flagged Off at Mayabunder (news, status only)

Also called Industries Department training Andaman, Tailoring and garment making training Andaman, Conventional training programme A&N, Vocational training Directorate of Industries

Free one-year training in a trade such as tailoring and garment making, with a monthly stipend announced with each intake

Free year-long trade training run by the Directorate of Industries at its own centres. Women can learn tailoring and garment making at Sri Vijaya Puram, Diglipur and Car Nicobar, or other trades like cane and bamboo or coir.

Status

Runs every year with one intake: forms for 2026 to 27 were given out from 11 May to 15 July 2026, so the next chance is the 2027 intake; checked 25 October 2026.

Who can apply

• Passed Class 10
• Holds a Local Certificate of the A&N Islands
• Centres: Sri Vijaya Puram, Diglipur, Hut Bay (Little Andaman) and Car Nicobar

Documents

• Class 10 certificate
• Local Certificate of the A&N Islands
• Fitness certificate from a government doctor

How to apply

1. Watch for the yearly notice, usually in May
2. Collect the form from the Training Cell of the Directorate of Industries or its extension office at Diglipur, Hut Bay or Car Nicobar
3. Hand it in before the last date with your documents

In person: Training Cell, Directorate of Industries, Sri Vijaya Puram, or the Industries Promotion Officer at Diglipur, Hut Bay or Car Nicobar

Run by

Directorate of Industries, Andaman and Nicobar Administration

The age limit and stipend amount for 2026 to 27 were seen only in news reports, so check the notice. The Directorate also runs shorter free courses, such as a 3-month tailoring course for women in 2026 and short coir and handicraft trainings for SHG women.

Checked 25 October 2026 against Industries Department Newsletter (February to April 2025): conventional training at five centres, Industries Department 4th Edition Newsletter, January 2026, The Daily Telegrams, 18 March 2026: Free 3 Months Vocational Training Programmes (status only), Applications Invited for One-Year Conventional Training Programmes for 2026 to 27 (news, status only), Industries Department Extends Application Deadline Till July 15 (news, status only) · Official page to apply

Also called ANIIDCO loan, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation loan, ANIIDCO financing

Loan for 75% of the project cost up to ₹10 lakh, and 66% of the cost above ₹10 lakh, repaid over up to 10 years

A business loan from the islands' own development corporation for setting up a unit such as a small factory, workshop, restaurant, tourism service or shop complex. It is open to any island entrepreneur, including women.

Status

The loan scheme is still listed on the ANIIDCO website in October 2026; no recent news of sanctions was found (checked 25 October 2026).

Who can apply

• Someone setting up an eligible unit in the islands: manufacturing or processing, transport, hotel or restaurant, repair or packing with machines, technical or medical services, construction equipment, shopping complex, computer institute franchise, or tourism facilities
• Can put in her own share: at least 25% of the project cost up to ₹10 lakh, and 34% above ₹10 lakh

Documents

• Prescribed application form (₹50 at the Corporation)
• Project details and the documents listed on the form
• A government employee who stands as surety for loans up to ₹2 lakh, or collateral (land, building or a bank's backing) above ₹2 lakh

How to apply

1. Buy the application form at ANIIDCO, Vikas Bhawan, for ₹50
2. Fill it in with your project details and attach the documents
3. Pay the processing fee of 0.25% of the loan (up to ₹1,000)

In person: Sr. Manager (Credit and Finance), ANIIDCO, Vikas Bhawan, Sri Vijaya Puram; phone 03192 237251

Run by

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation Ltd (ANIIDCO), a UT government company

This is a normal loan, not a grant, and it is not only for women. The interest rates on the page (9.95% to 11.95% a year, with 1% off for paying on time) follow SIDBI rates and look old, so ask for the current rate. Loans above ₹2 lakh need collateral such as land, a building or a bank's backing.

Checked 25 October 2026 against ANIIDCO: Credit and Financing, Citizen Charter: ANIIDCO, sanction of loan · Official page to apply

Also called A&N Bed and Breakfast Scheme 2026, Andaman homestay registration, Home stay scheme Andaman

Official Silver or Gold home stay registration for 1 to 8 guest rooms, a listing in the Tourism directory, and property and water tax at household rates

Lets a family register spare rooms in its home as an approved home stay, so she can earn from tourists. Approved homes are listed and promoted by the Tourism Department and keep paying household rates for property and water tax.

Status

New guidelines were notified in the A&N Gazette on 14 October 2026, and registration is open on the National Single Window System portal (checked 25 October 2026).

Who can apply

• Owner of a house in the A&N Islands with at least 1 and at most 8 rooms (16 beds) to let; the owner may or may not live there
• Rooms of at least 120 sq ft in towns and 100 sq ft in villages (Silver), each with an attached bathroom
• Must pass an inspection by the Classification Committee

Documents

• Sale deed, lease deed, revenue papers or house tax receipt
• Affidavit if the house is shared, or NOC from the housing society for a flat
• Police verification or NOC
• Affidavit accepting the scheme conditions
• Photos of the house, rooms and bathrooms, and the filled checklist

How to apply

1. Read the gazette guidelines and checklist
2. Apply online on the National Single Window System portal with your documents
3. Keep the house ready for inspection; a decision is due within 30 days

In person: Directorate of Tourism, Sri Vijaya Puram

Run by

Directorate of Tourism, Andaman and Nicobar Administration

This gives approval and publicity, not money. The gazette asks for a classification fee of ₹1,000 (Silver) or ₹2,000 (Gold) by demand draft but in another place says no application fee, so confirm with the Directorate of Tourism.

Checked 25 October 2026 against A&N Extraordinary Gazette No. 277, 14 October 2026: Guidelines for A&N Bed and Breakfast / Home Stay Establishment Scheme, National Single Window System: Andaman and Nicobar Islands · Official page to apply