Government Strengthens Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Social Inclusion through SMILE Scheme

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is implementing the Support for Marginalised Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise (SMILE) as an umbrella central sector scheme for comprehensive rehabilitation and socio‑economic empowerment of marginalised groups. Under the sub‑scheme for persons engaged in begging, 42,589 individuals have been identified and 12,710 rehabilitated, with provisions for medical care, counselling, education and skill development. The scheme also covers transgender welfare, establishing 23 Garima Grehs in 17 states/UTs that have rehabilitated 1,041 transgender persons, issued 33,303 identity cards, and provided skill and entrepreneurship training to over 800 beneficiaries. Convergence with state governments, local bodies and agencies is emphasized, and a third‑party evaluation by NIRDPR (Sept‑Oct 2025) informed revised guidelines for the 16th Finance Commission cycle (2026‑31).