NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Friday approved a five-year extension of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme from 2026-27 to 2030-31 with a financial outlay of Rs 3.15 lakh crore, while also clearing an expanded Khelo India programme and enhanced assistance to National Sports Federations (NSFs) with a combined allocation of Rs 36,441 crore over the same period.
The decisions were taken at a meeting of the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Announcing the decisions, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the extension of PM-KISAN would ensure the continuation of income support to eligible farmers through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mechanism.
Under the flagship scheme, launched in February 2019, eligible farmer families receive Rs 6,000 annually in three equal installments of Rs 2,000 each. The amount is transferred directly to beneficiaries’ bank accounts to help them meet agricultural expenses such as seeds, fertilisers and other inputs at the beginning of every crop cycle.
“The scheme provides timely financial assistance to farmers in line with the crop cycle, enabling them to meet sowing expenses and reduce dependence on borrowing,” Vaishnaw said.
Citing impact assessment studies, the minister said nearly 85 percent of beneficiary farmers reported a reduction in borrowing after the introduction of the scheme.
The government said PM-KISAN has emerged as one of the world's largest DBT programmes, with payments being made through Aadhaar-based authentication and digital verification, ensuring greater transparency and accountability.
Since its launch in 2019, more than Rs 4.47 lakh crore has been transferred directly into farmers' bank accounts through 23 instalments. The latest instalment benefited over 9.49 crore farmers, with Rs 18,984 crore released. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the scheme disbursed more than Rs 1.71 lakh crore to provide financial support to farmers.
Government data also shows that women farmers have received over Rs 1.06 lakh crore under the scheme, with nearly one in every four beneficiaries being a woman.
According to the Centre, the assured income support has enabled farmers to make timely investments in quality seeds, fertilisers, irrigation, farm machinery and other agricultural inputs, thereby improving productivity, reducing reliance on informal credit and strengthening the financial stability of rural households.
The Cabinet also approved a scheme aimed at offshore exploration with an outlay of Rs 84,084 crore.
'Samudra Manthan', the National Offshore Exploration Scheme, under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, encompasses a comprehensive set of interventions across the offshore exploration value chain.
Samudra Manthan is expected to catalyse reserve accretion of over 600 million metric tonnes of oil equivalent (MMTOE), substantially increase offshore exploration activity, promote higher domestic oil and gas production, and generate large-scale employment, among other objectives.
In a separate decision, the Cabinet approved a major expansion of the Khelo India programme along with enhanced financial support for National Sports Federations. The combined outlay of Rs 36,441 crore for the next five years is nearly eight times the allocation under the previous Khelo India scheme.
Vaishnaw said the revamped programme reinforces the government's commitment to making sports a key pillar of youth development and nation-building while creating a structured pathway for talented athletes from the grassroots to the international level.
The expanded scheme seeks to establish an integrated athlete development ecosystem, covering talent identification, scientific coaching, elite training and Olympic preparation. It aims to create seamless progression for athletes from grassroots competitions to the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS).
The government said the programme would significantly strengthen sports infrastructure across the country through National Centres of Excellence, Khelo India Centres of Excellence, Sports Authority of India (SAI) Training Centres, Khelo India Accredited Academies, Khelo India Centres and Youth Sports Companies of the Armed Forces.
The revamped initiative also proposes to deepen the domestic sporting ecosystem by supporting competitions at the school, university, regional and sport-specific league levels. It places renewed emphasis on encouraging participation by women athletes and para-athletes, while promoting indigenous sports alongside Olympic disciplines.
The approvals mark a major push by the Centre to strengthen both rural welfare and the country's sporting ecosystem, with substantial investments aimed at improving farmers' incomes and creating a comprehensive pipeline for sporting excellence over the next five years.
