NEW DELHI: More than 9.34 crore farmers across the country received over ₹18,690 crore under the 24th instalment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme, released on Friday.
The amount was transferred directly into beneficiaries’ bank accounts through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system at a programme held in Banaskantha, Gujarat, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
With the latest instalment, cumulative disbursements under the scheme have crossed ₹4.64 lakh crore.
Under PM-KISAN, eligible landholding farmer families receive financial assistance of ₹6,000 annually in three equal instalments of ₹2,000 each. The assistance is intended to help farmers meet agricultural expenses, including the purchase of seeds, fertilisers and other inputs.
The Union Cabinet approved the continuation of the scheme from 2026-27 to 2030-31 with a financial outlay of ₹3.15 lakh crore. The Union Budget 2026-27 has allocated ₹60,000 crore for its implementation.
Launched on February 24, 2019, the scheme uses Aadhaar-linked bank accounts, e-KYC and digital verification to facilitate payments and identify eligible beneficiaries. Farmers can complete e-KYC through OTP, biometric or face authentication.
The government said beneficiary identification and verification were carried out by state and Union Territory administrations, which are responsible for maintaining records and preventing duplicate or ineligible payments. As of December 2025, ₹416.75 crore had been recovered from ineligible beneficiaries, including those who did not meet the scheme’s eligibility conditions.
Farmers can register grievances through the PM-KISAN portal and the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS). The ministry reported that 24,605 grievances were recorded on the PM-KISAN portal during 2024-25.
The scheme also provides digital assistance through Kisan-eMitra, an artificial intelligence-enabled chatbot launched in September 2023. It offers information on payment status, registration and eligibility in 11 Indian languages.
The government said the scheme was aimed at strengthening farmers’ income security and supporting agricultural investment through direct financial assistance.
