A new initiative by the Darjeeling district administration to conduct a survey a month ahead of the eighth edition of the Bengal government’s flagship Duare Sarkar in December last year has started bearing significant results in rural areas of the hills.

Almost 80 per cent of people found eligible during the survey for the welfare schemes of the Mamata Banerjee government have already availed themselves of the benefits, sources said.

“Darjeeling district magistrate Preeti Goyal had decided to start a survey in the Rungli-Rungliot block in the hills before the Duare Sarkar camps,” said a source in the administration.

The eighth phase of the Duare Sarkar camps was held from December 15 to 30 and they covered 36 government schemes.

At the Duare camps, officials of various government departments solve any problems villagers face at the administrative level. However, a month ahead of the eighth edition of the Duare Sarkar programme, the Rungli-Rungliot block officials started visiting rural areas.

“Apart from visiting houses, the officials held camps in tea garden areas in the evenings,” said a source.

The aim was to detect people who were eligible for government welfare schemes but were denied the benefits for various reasons like the lack of proper documents to prove their claims. Such camps largely dealt with tea plantation labourers and others who worked outside the estates.

“The target was to raise awareness of the government schemes and identify eligible beneficiaries who were yet to avail themselves of the same,” said a source.

In the Rungli-Rungliot block, the survey determined that a total of 1,003 individuals could apply for the benefits at the Duare Sarkar camps.

The intensive collection of data related to the potential beneficiaries also helped in setting up effective camps which included mobile camps for elderly people who could not visit the designated places.

Special mobile camps were also set up at P - 2 polling stations. Polling personnel need to leave for the P - 2 booths two days before the voting because of the difficult terrain to reach there.

“Special camps were set up at two of the highest villages in Bengal, Gorkhey and Samanden forest villages situated at an altitude of around 7,600 feet,” said Richard Lepcha, the Darjeeling Sadar subdivisional officer.

The survey was later extended to the other four blocks in the Darjeeling hills.

Data suggest Lakshmir Bhandar (that offers financial assistance to women), Swasthya Sathi (health insurance), student credit cards, caste certificates, old age and widow pension, and Khadya Sathi (food security scheme for low-income groups) are mostly sought after in the tea garden areas.

From January 1, an initiative is being taken by the administration to deliver services to the applicants at the Duare Sarkar camps. “The service delivery will take place till January 31 and we received around 68,000 applications at the Duare Sarkar camps," said a source.

A the Duare Sarkar camps, career counselling, health check-ups and blood donation were also held.