Varanasi: Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today credited the 20th installment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme, transferring over ₹20,500 crore to the bank accounts of more than 9.7 crore farmers across the country. The installment was released from Varanasi, the Prime Minister’s parliamentary constituency, during a public event.
The PM-KISAN scheme, a flagship initiative of the central government, provides financial assistance to land-holding farmer families to support their agricultural and domestic needs. Under the scheme, eligible farmers receive ₹6,000 annually, paid in three equal installments of ₹2,000 every four months. This direct benefit transfer (DBT) mechanism ensures that the funds reach the beneficiaries without any intermediaries.
The disbursement marks a significant milestone, with the government’s total transfers under the scheme since its inception in 2019 now exceeding ₹3.69 lakh crore. The release of this latest installment is particularly timely, as it coincides with the ongoing Kharif crop season, providing crucial support to farmers for their farming and irrigation requirements.
In addition to the fund transfer, Prime Minister Shri Modi also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for numerous development projects worth around ₹2,200 crore in Varanasi, focusing on infrastructure, education, healthcare, and tourism.
The government has emphasized the importance of mandatory e-KYC and Aadhaar-seeding of bank accounts to ensure that the benefits reach the correct and eligible recipients, and has also launched an AI chatbot, Kisan-eMitra, to assist farmers with their queries.