Updated October 4, 2026
West Bengal Social Security Portal: A Look Back at Its 2024 Launch and Evolution
West Bengal Social Security Portal: A Look Back at Its 2024 Launch and EvolutionIn 2024, the West Bengal government launched a dedicated social security portal
Before 2024, tracking a West Bengal welfare payment meant phone calls, office visits, and guesswork. The Social Security portal changed that — here is how it evolved.
Why the portal was created
Beneficiaries of schemes like Lakshmir Bhandar and Kanyashree routinely faced delays and confusion: payments credited late, no way to know application status, and no single place for answers. The portal launched in 2024 gave every beneficiary a single online interface for registration, application tracking, and payment status.
2024–2025: the Lakshmir Bhandar era
In its first phase the portal served the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme's tiered payouts — ₹1,500/month for general-category women and ₹1,700/month for SC/ST women — alongside other welfare schemes. Millions of beneficiaries used it to track DBT credits and application progress, and the portal became the state's central welfare hub.
June 2026: the Annapurna Bhandar transition
On 1 June 2026, the state replaced Lakshmir Bhandar with Annapurna Bhandar: a uniform ₹3,000/month for every eligible woman aged 25–60, with caste-based tiers removed. Existing beneficiaries were migrated automatically — their monthly amount simply upgraded, no re-application needed. The same portal (socialsecurity.wb.gov.in) now handles the new scheme's tracking, plus a dedicated Track Applicant page (socialsecurity.wb.gov.in/track-applicant) searchable by mobile number, Aadhaar, application ID, or Swasthya Sathi card.
What changed for users
- One uniform amount — no more category tiers to understand.
- Stricter eligibility — income taxpayers, government employees, and those removed from the State Identification Register (SIR) are excluded.
- Better tracking — application and payment status in one place, plus helpline 1800-345-5505.
- Free bus travel — women also get free state-run bus travel under the new scheme.
Looking ahead
With the September 2026 installment reaching around 1.58 crore women, the portal is now one of India's largest state-level DBT tracking systems. If you are checking a payment, use our payment status guide. Back to the Social Security WB overview.