Prime Minister Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKY)

Updated: 25-05-2022 11:08:50 AM

Referred to as the Prime Minister Garib Kalyan Yojana, the scheme intends to address the concerns of the poor and the frontline medical staff amidst the global coronavirus pandemic.

Key Features of PM Garib Kalyan Yojana

• Indian Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, on 25 March 2020, announced an economic relief package valued at Rs.1,70,000 Crore for the poor population, migrant workers and other sections of the country who need help to survive the deadly situation in the country
• The PM Garib Kalyan Package will be applicable for the next 3 months
• The scheme is estimated to cover around 80 crore rural population of the country, which constitutes around two-thirds of the country’s population
• The central government has claimed to distribute 5kg of rice or wheat per person, in addition to 5kg which had already been allotted
• The relief package includes food and cash components divided into eight sections of the society, including pensioners, women, and specially abled
• The government has also claimed to provide 1kg of pulses per family, in order to ensure adequate availability of protein

Benefits to Rural Sector

• Free cooking gas cylinders will be given to nearly 8.3 crore families that are below the poverty line
• 3 crore widows, pensioners, and people in Divyang category (specially-abled citizens) of the country will be given a one-time payment of Rs. 1000 

Benefits to Rural Women

• Collateral free loan of upto Rs. 20 Lakh will be given to the women self-help groups under the Deen Dayal Yojana who were earlier eligible for similar loan of upto Rs. 10 Lakh
• Benefitting a total of over 20 crore women account holders of Women Jan-Dhan Yojana will get ex-gratia payment of Rs.500 per month for the next 3 months

Benefits to Medical Workers

• The frontline medical workers (such as doctors, nurses and their support medical staff) who are working to avert the medical crisis in the country will be offered  a medical insurance of Rs.50 Lakh
• It must be noted that all government health centres, wellness centres, and hospitals (both central and state) would be covered under the scheme
• Approximately 22 lakh health workers would be provided insurance cover to fight this pandemic

Benefits to Farmers

• Around 8.9 crore farmers will be benefited under the scheme in terms of direct cash transfers. An installment of Rs.2,000 will be sent to these families in the first week of April

Benefits to MGNREGA Workers

• The government has decided to increase the wages of MGNREGA employees, by Rs.2000 per worker, on an average, which will eventually benefit 5 crore Indian families

Benefits to the Organized Sector

• Additionally, the Union Finance Minister also announced a hike in provident funds and withdrawal limits for the organized sector
• The EPF contribution of both, the employee and the employer of the companies having less than 100 employees, out of which 90% earn less than Rs.15,000 per month, will be paid by the government for the next 3 months

Benefits to the Building and Construction Workers

• The Central Government has provided a fund of Rs.31,000 Crore to provide assistance to around 3.5 Crore registered workers to protect them against economic disruptions

Benefits to the Wage Workers

• Workers earning wages below Rs.15,000 per month in businesses having less than 100 workers will be paid 24% of their monthly wages into their PF accounts for the next 3 months

Things to be Considered

• All the cash benefits offered under the scheme will be directly transferred to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries
• The Finance Minister has informed the media persons to inform the government of those beneficiaries who do not have a bank account to extend support in the given terms