Welfare in focus as NDA 3.0 clears farm payouts and PMAY houses
Modi signed his first file authorising the release of ₹20,000 crore for 93 million eligible cultivators
New Delhi: The Union government on Monday signed off on two welfare measures as it approved a cash-transfer installment for farmers and public housing for the poor under an ongoing flagship scheme, in its first set of executive decisions a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn in for a third straight term.
Approving the 17th installment of PM Kisan cash transfer for farmers, Modi signed his first file authorising the release of ₹20,000 crore for 93 million eligible cultivators.
Later in the evening, the newly formed Union Cabinet led by Modi met for the first time and approved a proposal to construct 30 million rural and urban houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), the government’s flagship public housing programme that was launched on February 24, 2019.
Of the 30 million houses, 20 million will be built in rural areas, while the remaining will be built in urban areas across the country over the next five years, an official said, requesting anonymity.
A senior government official said the Cabinet’s announcement on Monday is the same as made in the interim budget presented on February 1. The government had allocated ₹54,500 crore for PMAY-Rural and ₹26,170.61 crore for PMAY-Urban.
Under PM Kisan, the government provides income support of ₹6,000 a year to farmers with a valid enrolment. It is paid in three equal cash transfers of ₹2,000, one every four months.
{{/usCountry}}Under PM Kisan, the government provides income support of ₹6,000 a year to farmers with a valid enrolment. It is paid in three equal cash transfers of ₹2,000, one every four months.
{{/usCountry}}“Ours is a government fully committed to Kisan Kalyan (farmers’ welfare). It is therefore fitting that the first file signed on taking charge is related to farmer welfare,” an official statement by the government quoted Modi as saying.
PM Kisan is a central-sector scheme with 100% funding from the Centre. Identification of beneficiaries is the responsibility of state governments, as per scheme guidelines. Any land-owning farming household can enrol itself subject to exclusions, such as income ceilings, tax payments and total asset value.
Since its launch, the government has disbursed more than ₹2.24 lakh crore to eligible farmers in various installments, according to official data.
Cash transfers under the programme are usually made ahead of sowing season, so that farmers can utilise the amount to meet cultivation costs. The latest instalment was due in May but had to be deferred due to the Model Code of Conduct for the Lok Sabha elections.
The Congress took a swipe at the Centre over the delayed disbursement of funds.
“The 16th installment of PM Kisan Nidhi was due in January 2024 but was delayed by a month for the prime minister’s electoral calculus… The 17th installment of PM Kisan Nidhi was due in April/May 2024 but was delayed by the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct. The one-third Pradhan Mantri has done nobody a great favour by signing this file: these are legitimate entitlements due to farmers according to his government’s own policy. He has made a habit of converting routine administrative decisions into some great bonanza that he is bestowing upon the people,” Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh posted on X.
Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar expressed gratitude to Modi, saying: “Several lakhs of farmers in Punjab will benefit from this decision. The money will be transferred in bank accounts of beneficiary farmers which will augment their income.”
The Centre had launched the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana in 2015-16 to assist eligible rural and urban households in construction of houses with basic amenities.
According to the live dashboard maintained by the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs (MoHUA), 11.86 million houses have been sanctioned so far in urban areas, and 8.35 million houses have been built. In rural areas, more than 25.5 million houses were built under the scheme, against the sanctioned target of 29.5 million.
The PMAY is one of the flagship schemes of the Modi government since its first term, seeking to alleviate poverty and providing housing for all. While PMAY(U) was launched in June 2015, PMAY(R) was launched in October 2019.
The MoHUA official said that details of a sub-scheme of PMAY(U) proposed by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to help people in the middle-income group buy or build their own houses would be drawn up soon and sent to Cabinet for approval. The scheme was first suggested by Modi in his Independence Day address in 2023.
This new scheme is set to replace the Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme (CLSS), a sub-scheme of PMAY(U), which was discontinued in March 2021. The sub-scheme incidentally had the highest contribution (as much as ₹2.67 lakh) of the Union government compared to the other three sub-schemes. A total of 2.4 million houses were sanctioned under this sub-scheme.
