KISAN To Boost Savings Rate Of 10 Crore Farmers; PM Modi To Launch Scheme On 24 February From Gorakhpur

The farmers’ income support scheme announced in the 2019 budget, PM KISAN, is expected to help farmers save more on an average, and the programme will also help those who cultivate land under formal, informal or oral contracts as tenants apart from small land-owning farmers, reports Business Standard (BS).

Under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme, the government will transfer Rs 6,000 in three instalments of Rs 2,000 each to the bank accounts of approximately 10 crore small farmers who own less than two hectares of land. They constitute 86.21 per cent of all the farmers in India and collectively own 47.34 per cent of the land.

Presently, an average farmer who cultivates less than one acre of land has savings of Rs 465 per month. However, under the new scheme in which the government will transfer cash of Rs 500 a month to the beneficiary account, a marginal farmer can expect to save approximately Rs 965 per month (465 + 500) if his consumption pattern does not change.

Thus, effectively, the savings of over 10 crore farmers will double due to the scheme.

First Installment

The first instalment of Rs 2,000 will be paid by the Centre on 24 February (2019) when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to officially launch the PM-KISAN scheme at a high-profile event in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.

“The second instalment shall immediately follow the first one, in April itself, giving the beneficiaries at least Rs 4,000 of the total Rs 6,000 to be distributed in three equal instalments. So, a farmer receiving the first payment on March 30 may well get the second part within a week,” said a senior government official to Economic Times.

Also Read: Why The Direct Income Support For Farmers Is A Much Needed Correction