Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (PM-RKVY)

RKVY was launched in 2007-08 on a simple premise: states know their own agriculture better than a national template does, so give them money and let them plan.

How it has changed

• 2007-08: launched to incentivise states to prepare their own agricultural development plans
• 2015-16: funding moved to 60:40 Centre–state (90:10 for North Eastern and Himalayan states; 100% central for Union Territories)
• 2017-18: became RKVY-RAFTAAR
• 2022-23: restructured as a cafeteria scheme, merging several schemes so states could pick components from a menu
• 2024-25: renamed PM-RKVY, with specific allocations per component

What its components cover

Soil health, farm mechanisation, crop diversification, rainfed area development and irrigation. Soil Health Card work sits here.

Budget

₹7,386 crore spent in 2024-25, ₹7,000 crore revised for 2025-26, and ₹8,550 crore budgeted for 2026-27.

Because RKVY is a cafeteria scheme, what is actually on offer depends on what your state picked from the menu. The components cover:

• Soil health and fertility, including Soil Health Cards
• Farm mechanisation — tractors, implements, custom hiring centres
• Crop diversification, including moving away from water-intensive crops
• Rainfed area development
• Irrigation

This is the scheme most likely to be behind a farm machinery subsidy or a soil testing drive in your district, even when the notice does not name RKVY.

• Farmers in the state, under whichever components the state has taken up.
• The state decides the components, the beneficiary selection method and the per-beneficiary ceilings, within the central guidelines.
• Because the component menu differs by state and by year, your district agriculture office is the only reliable source on what you can currently claim.

• A component your state has not taken up this year is not available to you, even though RKVY funds it nationally.
• Assistance is capped at the unit cost approved in the state's plan.
• Machinery components almost always require sanction before purchase.

How to apply

This scheme is implemented through state governments, so the practical route is your district agriculture office or your state's agriculture department portal — not a central application.

When you go, ask for three things specifically:

1. Which components are open in your district this year
2. The assistance rate or unit cost for the item you want
3. Whether sanction must come before purchase, which it usually does

The last question matters most. Buying the equipment or input first and applying afterwards is the most common reason a subsidy claim is rejected.

• Land record
• Aadhaar and bank account details
• Quotation or invoice from an approved dealer for machinery components