PM-AJAY Scheme: ₹11,186 Crore Released Over 12 Years, 16,022 Villages Declared 'Adarsh Gram'

The Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana (PM-AJAY), managed by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, is actively driving the socio-economic empowerment of Scheduled Caste communities. Sudhansh Pant, Secretary of the Ministry, revealed that over ₹11,186 crore has been released under the three main components of this scheme over the last 12 years.

Secretary Sudhansh Pant stated that under the 'Adarsh Gram' component (formerly the Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana), ₹3,545.103 crore has been released for 48,811 selected villages since the 2014-15 financial year. Out of these, 16,022 villages met the prescribed development standards and were declared 'Adarsh Gram'. The primary objective of this component is to ensure holistic development by addressing gaps in infrastructure and essential services in Scheduled Caste-majority villages.

Regarding the Grant-in-Aid component (formerly the Special Central Assistance to Scheduled Castes sub-scheme), Mr. Pant noted that ₹7,142.692 crore has been released to states and union territories since the 2014-15 financial year. This assistance has benefited 34.61 lakh beneficiaries through skill development, livelihood promotion, and income-generating projects.

To improve the educational sector, the Hostel component (formerly the Babu Jagjivan Ram Chhatrawas Yojana) has seen the release of ₹498.215 crore since the 2014-15 financial year for the construction and expansion of 244 hostels, benefiting 24,131 students.

Highlighting recent achievements, the Secretary mentioned that during the financial years 2024-25 and 2025-26, ₹629.26 crore was released under the Adarsh Gram component, resulting in 8,823 villages being declared 'Adarsh Gram'. During the same period, ₹705.638 crore was released under the Grant-in-Aid component, benefiting 1,782 people, while ₹80.115 crore was allocated for 46 hostels under the Hostel component, benefiting 5,664 individuals.

Mr. Pant clarified that PM-AJAY has been implemented as an integrated Centrally Sponsored Scheme since 2021-22. It merged three previous schemes: the Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAGY), the Special Central Assistance to Scheduled Castes sub-scheme (SCA to SCSP), and the Babu Jagjivan Ram Chhatrawas Yojana (BJRCY). The scheme aims to reduce poverty and improve socio-economic indicators in Scheduled Caste-majority villages through skill development and income generation.