Over Rs 50,000 cr released under PM Kisan scheme

The central government has released more than Rs 50,850 crore till now under the PM Kisan scheme which completes one year on February 24.

Over 8.46 crore farmers have been covered under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi. The scheme completes one year on February 24, 2020

The total number of beneficiaries to be covered under the scheme is about 14 crore, based on estimates of the Agriculture Census 2015-16.

Under the Scheme, an amount of Rs 6,000 per year is transferred in three four monthly installments of Rs 2,000 directly into the bank accounts of the farmers, subject to certain exclusion criteria relating to higher income status.

The scheme was formally launched on February 24, 2019 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a function in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.

The scheme initially provided income support to all small and marginal farmers' families across the country, holding cultivable land upto 2 hectares. Its ambit was later expanded from June 1,2019 to cover all farmer families in the country irrespective of the size of their land holdings.

Affluent farmers have been excluded from the scheme such as Income Tax payers in last assessment year, professionals like Doctors, Engineers, Lawyers, Chartered Accountants etc., and pensioners drawing at least Rs 10,000 per month.

As on February 20, on the basis of the data of beneficiaries uploaded on the PM-Kisan web portal by the state/UT Governments 8.46 crores farmer families have been given the benefitsIANS