Context: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has released the 21st instalment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme during an event in Tamil Nadu. The instalment continues the government’s ongoing effort to ensure direct income support to farming households across India.
About the PM-KISAN Scheme
Launched in 2019 (with retrospective effect from December 2018), PM-KISAN is a central sector scheme providing income support to landholding farmer families across the country.
Objectives
- To provide unconditional financial assistance to farmers.
- To support farmers in meeting agricultural input costs and household needs.
- To help reduce dependence on informal credit and moneylenders.
Nodal Ministry
The scheme is implemented by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare.
Financial Benefits
- ₹6,000 per year per eligible farmer family.
- Transferred in three equal instalments of ₹2,000 every four months.
- Delivered through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to ensure transparency and leakage-free delivery.
Eligibility and Exclusions
Eligible:
- All landholding farmer families, irrespective of land size.
Excluded categories:
- Institutional landholders
- Active or former Ministers, MPs/MLAs, government officers
- Income-tax payers
- Professionals such as doctors, architects, engineers (if filing IT returns)
Beneficiary identification is done by the State/UT governments based on land records.
Technology Integration
PM-KISAN is one of India’s most digitally streamlined welfare schemes:
- Aadhaar-based e-KYC for authentication
- PM-KISAN Portal & Mobile App for real-time tracking
- AI Chatbot—Kisan-eMitra for queries, registration support, and grievance redressal
- Analytics for detecting duplicate or ineligible beneficiaries
Key Achievements
1. Financial Scale
- Over ₹3.70 lakh crore disbursed directly into farmers’ bank accounts.
- More than 11 crore farming families covered to date.
2. Inclusive Outreach
- 85%+ small and marginal farmers are enrolled.
- Women constitute over 25% of beneficiaries.
3. Coverage Expansion
Under the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra, saturation campaigns added
1 crore new eligible farmer households to the scheme.
4. Governance Impact
- Strengthened financial inclusion in rural areas.
- Improved income stability for smallholders.
- Enhanced transparency through DBT & digital verification.