Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana: A Decade of Agricultural Transformation

#GS-2 #GS-3 #Economy #Agriculture #Infrastructure #Environment #Sustainable Development #Current Events #National

Why in News

India's premier irrigation initiative, the **Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana**, has completed more than **10 years** of helping transform agriculture across the nation.

The government launched the **Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana** in **2015** to expand farming water access, increase protected farming land, and encourage efficient water use.
This program functions as a **Centrally Sponsored Scheme** and falls under the official **Core Scheme** category.
Funding is shared between the center and states in a **60:40** ratio for most states, **90:10** for northeastern and Himalayan states, and **100%** central funding for Union Territories.
The government created this master initiative by merging three older schemes: the **Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme**, the **Integrated Watershed Management Programme**, and **On-Farm Water Management**.
The central strategy focuses on **Jal Sanchay**, which means rainwater harvesting, and **Jal Sinchan**, which means using water efficiently on farms.
States execute this scheme through **State Irrigation Plans** and **District Irrigation Plans** to solve local water needs and coordinate funding at the ground level.
The government extended this program for the **2021-26** period with a total financial budget of **₹93,068.56 crore**.
In the **Union Budget 2026-27**, the government set aside **₹6,587 crore** to expand irrigation coverage and boost water saving methods.

This component speeds up the completion of unfinished major and medium dam and canal projects to bring water quickly to farm fields.
Since **2016-17**, central assistance worth **₹21,023 crore** has reached this component, providing direct benefits to **17.30 million farmers**.
In **2025-26**, the government added the **Modernization of Command Area Development and Water Management** sub-scheme with an initial budget of **₹1,600 crore**.
This new sub-scheme uses underground pipelines and modern micro-irrigation systems to carry canal water straight to individual farm plots without waste.

This project builds new water points using surface water and underground aquifers to bring regular irrigation to unwatered farmland.
Under this initiative, **3,462 Surface Minor Irrigation** projects have created **5.93 lakh hectares** of irrigation capacity, while groundwater projects added **88.55 thousand hectares**.

This section restores dry and degraded lands by building check dams, conserving topsoil, and storing local rainfall.
Since **2016-17**, the government has spent **₹12,432.09 crore** under this head to benefit **1.34 million farmers** across dryland zones.

Initially part of this scheme from **2015-16 to 2021-22**, this component moved into **Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana** in **2022-23** to push drip and sprinkler systems.
Drip systems supply water and liquid fertilizer straight to plant roots, while sprinklers spray water evenly like natural rainfall to conserve water and boost crop yields.
To help farmers buy this equipment, **National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development** created the **Micro Irrigation Fund**, offering **55%** subsidies to small farmers and **45%** to others.
This effort has brought **110.92 lakh hectares** of land under micro-irrigation, covering nearly **7.98%** of India's total cultivated crop area.

The government launched **Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana** on **1st July 2015** to ensure stable farm water supply and encourage smart water use.
The core goal of the scheme is to bring more farmland under assured irrigation and reduce water wastage in agriculture.
The four main pillars of this scheme are **Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme**, **Har Khet Ko Pani**, **Watershed Development**, and **Per Drop More Crop**.
The **Per Drop More Crop** section helps farmers install drip and sprinkler setups to get high crop outputs with minimal water.
The **Har Khet Ko Pani** section creates fresh local water sources through minor irrigation to cover left-out farm areas.