Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana has been one of the flagship initiatives of the Rajasthan government aimed at putting the power of smartphones and the internet directly into the hands of women and girl students. This scheme was designed to provide eligible women with a free 4G smartphone, SIM card and up to three years of data and calling benefits, with the government covering support of around ₹6,800 per beneficiary. The idea was not just to distribute gadgets, but to connect women with education, banking, government schemes and digital services in a direct and practical way.
If you want to understand whether you could qualify under the Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana eligibility criteria, the first basic condition was that the applicant had to be a permanent female resident of Rajasthan and her family needed to be registered under the state’s Chiranjeevi health insurance scheme. The main beneficiaries included women heads of Chiranjeevi families, girl students from classes 9 to 12 studying in government schools, students in government or government-aided colleges, ITIs and polytechnic institutes, widow or single women pensioners, and women who had completed the required number of working days under MGNREGA or the Indira Gandhi Urban Employment Guarantee scheme. Income limits and restrictions related to government jobs were used to ensure that the scheme actually focused on economically weaker families where owning a smartphone and paying for data was genuinely difficult.
Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana
| Point | Details |
|---|---|
| Scheme Name | Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana / Indira Gandhi Free Smartphone Yojana |
| State | Rajasthan (state-level scheme) |
| Launch | Initially launched in August 2023, later expanded phase-wise through camps during 2024–25 |
| Target Beneficiaries | Women heads of Chiranjeevi families, girl students of classes 9–12, students in higher education institutions (colleges, ITIs, polytechnics), widow/single women pensioners, women engaged under MGNREGA and urban employment schemes |
| Approximate Benefit Per Beneficiary | Around ₹6,800 (smartphone + SIM + data and calling package) |
| Connectivity Benefit | Up to about 3 years of free internet data and voice calling facility |
| Coverage Target | Around 1.3–1.35 crore women and girl students targeted in different phases |
| Mode Of Implementation | District and block-level camps, on-the-spot document verification, e-KYC, amount shown in e-wallet, phone selection and SIM activation at the camp itself |
Benefits And Digital Impact of Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana
One of the biggest advantages of this scheme was that households where even a basic phone had to be shared by everyone, saw the first-ever personal smartphone in the hands of the woman head or a girl student. With free data and calling, they were able to regularly access online classes, YouTube lectures, e-books, digital notes and exam preparation content, something that would have been difficult with paid data packs.
When it comes to banking and government services, pre-installed government apps and portals helped women check information about welfare schemes in their own name, track application status and use UPI for payments and receipts. For women engaged under MGNREGA and urban employment programmes, the smartphone became a powerful tool to check job cards, payment status and work-related notifications, reducing dependency on middlemen and improving transparency in day-to-day dealings.
Implementation And Current Updates
To ensure that the Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana reached the grassroots, the government adopted a camp-based model in which special camps were organized at district and block level. Beneficiaries had to visit these camps with their Jan Aadhaar, Aadhaar, student/pension documents and registered mobile number. Their e-KYC was completed on the spot, the scheme amount or entitlement was reflected in an e-wallet, and then they could choose from the available 4G smartphone models, get the SIM issued and have it activated at the same location.
By 2025, after changes in the state government and reassessment of priorities, the scheme reportedly moved into a review stage and in several places further distribution was temporarily put on hold. For women and students who had been expecting smartphones in later phases, this meant that they now had to wait for fresh official notifications. In such a situation, the most sensible step is to rely only on official government websites, district administration notices and credible news sources, and avoid any fake registration links or agents demanding money to “get your name added” in the list.
Key Objectives Of The Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana
At its core, the Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana was not just about a free device, but about making women digitally confident and independent. When a woman has her own smartphone and internet connection, she can check information about health schemes, ration, pension, scholarships, job opportunities and children’s education without depending on someone else. This strengthens her role in family decisions and builds self-confidence.
For girls in classes 9–12 and higher education, the scheme opened direct access to online learning platforms, mock tests, skill-based courses, coding tutorials and career guidance content. In many rural and semi-urban areas where students earlier had to travel far for coaching or pay high fees, a smartphone with reliable data became a gateway to quality digital learning. This not only helps in exam preparation but also in long-term skill development.
How Camps And Distribution Worked
In practice, the camp process was designed to be step-by-step and fairly streamlined. After reaching the camp, beneficiaries would first go through a helpdesk where their category and preliminary eligibility were checked. Then document verification was done using Jan Aadhaar, Aadhaar and, if applicable, student ID or pension documents. Once the verification matched the scheme criteria, e-KYC was completed and the beneficiary’s e-wallet or scheme account reflected the entitlement for the smartphone package.
Next, at a separate counter, beneficiaries could see the list of available smartphone models within the scheme’s financial limit. If someone wanted a costlier model than the scheme’s covered amount, the difference had to be paid by the beneficiary. After selecting the handset, a SIM card from the authorised telecom partner was issued and activated with the bundled plan for data and calling. In many cases, beneficiaries left the camp with a fully functional smartphone, active SIM and pre-installed government apps by the same day.
Why Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana Matters
Schemes like the Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana are important because they reduce the digital gap between urban and rural, rich and poor, and men and women. For a long time, the primary phone in many households was controlled by male members, and women had little or no privacy or freedom to use digital tools. By placing a device in the hands of the woman herself, the scheme shifted that power balance.
It also created a foundation for future digital initiatives. Once women are comfortable with using smartphones, they can be included in app-based health services, teleconsultations, online complaint systems, self-help group platforms, digital literacy programmes and online marketplaces. Over time, this can contribute not just to personal convenience, but also to higher income opportunities, better awareness of rights and stronger participation in public life.
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Practical Tips for Beneficiaries
For anyone associated with such schemes, a few practical points are always useful:
- Keep your core documents like Jan Aadhaar, Aadhaar, bank passbook, student ID or pension order updated and in one place, so that verification at camps or offices becomes smooth.
- Do not share your OTPs, PINs or UPI details with anyone, even if they claim to be from a help centre; this is crucial to protect your money and personal data.
- Once you get a smartphone, learn basic security steps like setting a strong screen lock, enabling app permissions carefully and regularly updating important apps.
- Use the device purposefully prioritise education, banking, health and government services over time-wasting or harmful content.
Even though the future of the scheme in its original format may depend on policy decisions, the idea behind it remains powerful: using smartphones as a tool to empower women, strengthen education and ensure that welfare reaches the right hands in a transparent, digital-first way.
FAQs on Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana
1. What is the Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana?
The Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana is a Rajasthan government scheme that provides free smartphones, SIM cards and multi‑year data and calling benefits to eligible women and girl students from Chiranjeevi families.
2. Who is eligible to get a free smartphone under this scheme?
To be eligible, the applicant must be a woman or girl student who is a resident of Rajasthan and belongs to a family registered under the Chiranjeevi scheme.
3. What benefits do beneficiaries receive in the Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana?
Each eligible beneficiary gets a free smartphone from approved models, along with a SIM card and a bundled plan including free internet data and voice calls for up to about three years.
4. How can someone apply for the Indira Gandhi Smartphone Yojana?
Applications are accepted offline through government‑organised district and block‑level camps rather than through a regular online form.
