Aadhaar number has been made optional for small and marginal farmers to avail the second instalment of Rs 2,000 on April 1 under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme, the government said Thursday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Feb. 24 launched the PM-Kisan scheme, transferring the first instalment of Rs 2,000 each to 1.01 crore farmers, totalling Rs 2,021 crore.
Under the Rs 75,000 crore PM-Kisan scheme, Rs 6,000 per year will be given to 12 crore small and marginal farmer families in three instalments. The scheme is completely funded by the central government.
Aadhaar number will not be mandatory to avail the second instalment of Rs 2,000 due on April 1, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told reporters after the Cabinet meeting.
Earlier, the agriculture ministry had made the Aadhaar number of small and marginal farmers optional for availing the first instalment of Rs 2,000. However, to get the subsequent instalments, it had made compulsory for farmers to show Aadhaar number for verifying their identity.
For the purpose of the calculation of the benefit, the government has defined a small and marginal landholder family as the one comprising of husband, wife and minor children up to 18 years of age, who collectively own cultivable land up to two hectare as per the land records of the concerned states.
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