More than 9 crore farmer families across India are set to keep receiving direct income support through 2030–31 — the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved a five-year extension of the PM-KISAN Scheme with a total financial outlay of ₹3.15 lakh crore. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi announced the decision on Saturday, 1 August 2026, calling it a landmark step toward rural prosperity and farmer dignity.

₹4.47 lakh crore already in farmers' accounts

Since its launch in February 2019, PM-KISAN — Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi — has transferred more than ₹4.47 lakh crore directly into the bank accounts of eligible landholding farmer families, making it one of the largest direct benefit transfer programmes in the world. The scheme provides ₹6,000 per year, paid in three equal instalments of ₹2,000 each, directly into Aadhaar-linked accounts — bypassing intermediaries entirely.

Minister Joshi framed the Cabinet decision in terms that resonate deeply in rural Karnataka and beyond, invoking the word 'annadatas' (providers of food) — a term that carries both economic and moral weight in Indian agrarian culture. 'PM-KISAN continues to strengthen rural prosperity, ensure timely income support, and empower India's annadatas with transparency and dignity,' he wrote.

Five more years of Aadhaar-linked direct transfers

The extension covers the period 2026–27 to 2030–31, committing the central government to sustained annual disbursements over the next five budget cycles. The ₹3.15 lakh crore outlay will require parliamentary approval during upcoming budget sessions — and will be watched closely for any revisions to beneficiary eligibility lists or payment schedules.

The decision fits squarely into the government's decade-long pivot toward targeted, technology-enabled welfare delivery. Since 2019, successive Union Budgets have prioritised Aadhaar-linked direct benefit transfers as a tool to reduce leakages in rural welfare — a model that PM-KISAN has become the flagship proof-of-concept for. The cumulative ₹4.47 lakh crore already disbursed is itself a testament to the scale at which DBT infrastructure now operates in India.

Karnataka's senior BJP voice amplifies the message

Pralhad Joshi, who holds the portfolios of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and New and Renewable Energy, posted in both English and Kannada — a deliberate outreach to his home state of Karnataka, where farmer welfare remains a politically charged issue. The bilingual post signals that the Cabinet decision is being amplified not just as national policy, but as a message to the agrarian communities of southern India.

With India's medium-term fiscal framework now anchored around this commitment, the pressure on the parliamentary budget process to ratify the ₹3.15 lakh crore allocation will be immediate and significant.

For 9 crore-plus farming families, the next instalment is no longer uncertain — the Cabinet has made sure of that.