Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, today on July 16, 2025, approved the ‘Prime Minister Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana’, a flagship scheme aimed at enhancing agriculture and allied sectors across India. The scheme, with an annual outlay of Rs 24,000 crore, will be implemented over a six-year period starting from the financial year 2025-26.
Inspired by the NITI Aayog’s Aspirational Districts Programme, this first-of-its-kind initiative will initially be implemented in 100 districts. The scheme focuses entirely on improving agricultural productivity, encouraging crop diversification and sustainable practices, strengthening irrigation facilities, enhancing post-harvest storage at the panchayat and block levels, and increasing access to agricultural credit.
Announced in the Union Budget 2025-26, the scheme targets districts that face long-standing agricultural challenges. It will be executed by combining 36 existing central government schemes across 11 departments, along with state-level programmes and private sector partnerships.
The selection of districts will be based on three key indicators: low agricultural productivity, low cropping intensity, and limited credit availability. Each state and union territory will have at least one district included, with the final selection determined by the share of net cropped area and operational landholdings.
To ensure effective implementation and monitoring, committees will be set up at the district, state, and national levels. At the district level, a ‘Dhan-Dhaanya Samiti’, comprising officials and progressive farmers, will prepare a District Agriculture and Allied Activities Plan. These plans will be aligned with national priorities such as crop diversification, water and soil conservation, agricultural self-sufficiency, and the promotion of natural and organic farming.
Progress in each district will be monitored monthly using a real-time dashboard with 117 key performance indicators. NITI Aayog will oversee and guide the planning process, while Central Nodal Officers assigned to each district will ensure consistent on-ground execution.
The government expects that the scheme will not only fast-track development in the identified 100 districts but also improve national averages across key agricultural indicators. It is expected to enhance productivity, encourage value addition, generate rural employment, and improve access to both short- and long-term credit, benefiting approximately 1.7 crore farmers across the country.
