Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana

Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) is the central government’s umbrella irrigation scheme, launched on 1 July 2015 with the motto “Har Khet Ko Pani” — water to every field. It brings together major-project irrigation (AIBP), water-source and distribution work (Har Khet Ko Pani), watershed development, and the micro-irrigation subsidy (Per Drop More Crop) under one framework.

Four: (1) Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) — completing major and medium irrigation projects, run by the Ministry of Jal Shakti; (2) Har Khet Ko Pani — source creation, water distribution and ground-water development, also under Jal Shakti; (3) Watershed Development — ridge treatment, water harvesting and soil conservation, run by the Department of Land Resources; and (4) Per Drop More Crop — the drip/sprinkler micro-irrigation subsidy, now funded through RKVY-RAFTAAR.

Per Drop More Crop (PDMC), the micro-irrigation component. It pays a capital subsidy — 55% of the drip/sprinkler system cost for small and marginal farmers, 45% for other farmers — rather than a cash transfer. AIBP and Har Khet Ko Pani fund infrastructure projects, not individual payments.

55% of the system cost for small and marginal farmers, and 45% for other farmers. This is shared between the Centre and the State in a 60:40 ratio for most states, 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan states, and 100% Centre-funded for Union Territories.

Yes. Assistance is capped at an overall ceiling of 5 hectares per beneficiary. The land can be in one block or spread across locations, but the total area counted for subsidy cannot exceed 5 hectares.

Some state governments add a top-up subsidy over and above the PMKSY rate, funded through the Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) set up with NABARD or the state’s own budget. The top-up amount is state-specific — check with your state Agriculture or Horticulture department for the current rate in your state.

Any farmer with cultivable land — an owner, or a lessee with a written lease agreement valid for at least 7 years — who has not already received micro-irrigation subsidy on that same land within the last 7 years, and who buys the system from a state-registered manufacturer.

Apply on your state’s micro-irrigation MIS portal (online mode), or offline at the office of the District Agriculture Officer or District Horticulture Officer. Applications are accepted year-round — there is no fixed window.

Aadhaar (or proof of enrolment), the land record or a qualifying lease agreement, a bank passbook for Direct Benefit Transfer, a mobile number, and a cost estimate (Bill of Quantities) from the manufacturer. A passport-size photo is needed for office applications.

No. The subsidy is paid only on systems bought from a manufacturer registered with the State Level Sanctioning Committee (SLSC) and certified to BIS standards. The state publishes an approved list — a farmer can choose any company from it, and that company must provide at least 3 years of after-sales service.

The subsidy is released after installation, once the implementing agency physically verifies the completed system and the farmer certifies it. Payment goes electronically by Direct Benefit Transfer into the farmer’s Aadhaar-linked bank account.

Not immediately. A micro-irrigation system has a projected life of 7 years, and a farmer becomes eligible for subsidy on the same plot again only after that period — even if a different crop is grown in the meantime.

Officially, Per Drop More Crop has been funded and implemented through the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY-RAFTAAR) since 2022-23, rather than as a direct PMKSY budget line — but the 55%/45% subsidy pattern, ceilings and guidelines set under PMKSY continue unchanged, and most state portals and dealers still refer to it as the “PMKSY subsidy”.

Micro-irrigation systems attract 12% GST, as notified by the Ministry of Finance (Notification No. 6/2018-Central Tax (Rate), dated 25 January 2018).

For general PMKSY and farm-scheme queries, call the toll-free Kisan Call Centre on 1800-180-1551. For written queries on Per Drop More Crop specifically, the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare’s technical support email is [email protected].