Important Agricultural Missions and Schemes of India

India’s agricultural sector forms the backbone of its rural economy, employing nearly half of the national workforce and ensuring food security. To address challenges like low crop productivity, climate variability, fragmented landholdings, and soil degradation, the Government of India has launched multiple targeted agricultural schemes and missions. These initiatives focus on improving irrigation access, providing direct income support, upgrading credit mechanisms, promoting organic farming, and developing resilient agricultural infrastructure across states.

Core Income Support and Risk Management Schemes

Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN)

Launched in February 2019, PM-KISAN is a Central Sector Scheme designed to provide financial support to landholding farmer families across the country.

• Financial Benefit: Eligible landholding farmer families receive ₹6,000 per year transferred directly to their bank accounts in three equal installments of ₹2,000 every four months.
• Database Management: Identification of beneficiary landholding families falls under the responsibility of state and Union Territory governments. Payments process via Aadhaar-seeded bank accounts to prevent leakages.
• Exclusion Criteria: Institutional landholders, high-income individuals, retired or serving government employees, constitutional post holders, and income-tax payers are excluded from benefits.

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY)

PMFBY was introduced in 2016 by replacing the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (NAIS) and Modified NAIS to provide comprehensive risk coverage against non-preventable natural risks.

• Uniform Low Premiums: Farmers pay a uniform premium rate of 2.0% for Kharif crops, 1.5% for Rabi crops, and 5.0% for commercial and horticultural crops. The remaining premium cost is split equally between the Central and State governments.
• Technology Utilization: Uses satellite imagery, drones, and the CROPIC app for crop loss assessment, enabling faster claim settlements.
• Coverage Scope: Covers yield losses due to drought, dry spells, flood, inundation, pests, diseases, landslide, natural fire, lightning, post-harvest losses, and localized calamities like hailstorms.

Infrastructure and Credit Enhancement Schemes

Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF)

AIF is a medium-to-long term debt financing facility launched in 2020 under the Atmanirbhar Bharat package to fund post-harvest management infrastructure and community farming assets.

• Financing Mechanism: Provides ₹1,000,000 crore in loans disbursed by commercial banks, cooperative banks, and Regional Rural Banks (RRBs).
• Interest Subvention: All loans under AIF carry an interest subvention of 3% per annum up to a limit of ₹2 crore for a maximum period of seven years.
• Credit Guarantee: Credit guarantee coverage is made available to eligible borrowers under the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) scheme for loans up to ₹2 crore.

Modified Interest Subvention Scheme (MISS) and Kisan Credit Card (KCC)

MISS provides short-term crop loans up to ₹3 lakh to farmers at a subsidized interest rate of 7% per annum.

• Prompt Repayment Incentive: An additional 3% interest subvention is granted to farmers who repay their loans promptly, reducing the effective interest rate to 4% per annum.
• KCC Expansion: The Kisan Credit Card scheme, introduced in 1998, has been extended to animal husbandry, fisheries, and dairy farmers to cover working capital needs.

Production, Soil Health, and Resource Missions

National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA)

NMSA seeks to make agriculture more productive, sustainable, and climate-resilient by promoting location-specific integrated farming systems.

• Soil Health Card (SHC) Scheme: Launched in 2015 at Suratgarh, Rajasthan, to analyze soil samples across 12 vital parameters (N, P, K, S, Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn, Bo, pH, EC, and Organic Carbon) and issue advisory recommendations to farmers every three years.
• Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY): Operates as a sub-component of NMSA to promote cluster-based organic farming using Participatory Guarantee System (PGS-India) certification.

National Food Security Mission (NFSM)

Launched in 2007, NFSM targets increasing the production of rice, wheat, pulses, coarse cereals, and commercial crops through area expansion and productivity enhancement.

• Pulse Focus: Dedicates specific components to pulse production to reduce import dependence and boost soil nitrogen fixation.
• Seed Minikits: Distributes high-yielding crop varieties and bio-fortified seed minikits free of cost directly to small and marginal farmers.

Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY)

RKVY began in 2007 to incentivize states to increase public investment in agriculture and allied sectors. Modernized as RKVY-RAFTAAR (Remunerative Approaches for Agriculture and Allied Sectors Rejuvenation), it grants states autonomy to plan and execute district-specific agricultural projects.

Sectoral Matrix of Key Agricultural Schemes

Important Facts for Quick Revision

• PM-KISAN provides direct income support of ₹6,000 per year to eligible landholding farmer families without any requirement of land size caps.
• Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana sets farmer premium contributions at 2% for Kharif crops, 1.5% for Rabi crops, and 5% for commercial/horticultural crops.
• The Soil Health Card scheme tests soil samples across 12 essential chemical and physical parameters.
• The Soil Health Card scheme was formally launched on February 19, 2015, at Suratgarh in Rajasthan.
• Agriculture Infrastructure Fund provides a 3% per annum interest subvention on debt up to ₹2 crore for a maximum tenure of seven years.
• The Kisan Credit Card scheme was established in 1998 based on the recommendations of the R.V. Gupta Committee.
• PM-KUSUM scheme enables farmers to install solar water pumps and sell surplus solar power back to regional electricity distribution companies.
• Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana relies on the Participatory Guarantee System (PGS-India) for peer-based organic certification.
• The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare operates the national e-NAM (National Agriculture Market) portal to connect wholesale APMC mandis online.
• Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER) develops certified organic production clusters across northeastern states.