Why in the news?

  • The Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has introduced new flexibilities within the Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) scheme to enhance water-use efficiency and increase farmers’ income.

Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) scheme

  • Lauch: The Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) scheme was launched in 2015-16 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme under Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY).
  • Aim: The scheme’s primary focus is to improve water use efficiency at the farm level via micro-irrigation methods (i.e., drip and sprinkler irrigation).
  • Implementation:
    • The scheme is implemented by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (DA&FW) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
    • From 2022-23 onwards, PDMC is being implemented under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY).
  • Financial Assistance:
    • 55% subsidy for small & marginal farmers and 45% subsidy for other farmers.
    • For North Eastern / Himalayan states, an additional 25% higher unit cost is considered for subsidy calculations.
    • For states with low penetration of micro irrigation, an extra 15% is added for subsidy cost calculations.
  • Support Mechanism for States:
    • Micro Irrigation Fund (MIF) has been established with NABARD with an initial corpus of ₹5,000 crore, from which States can avail loans to expand micro irrigation.
    • The central government offers 3% interest subvention on these loans, funded via the PDMC scheme.
  • Coverage:
    • Total area covered under micro irrigation via PDMC (2015-16 to 2023-24): 83.06 lakh hectares.
    • Central assistance released (2015-16 to date): ₹18,714.69 crore.
  • Technological Support:
    • ICAR has developed cost-effective, location-specific technologies such as-
      • Rainwater harvesting & recycling
      • Conjunctive use of rain, surface and groundwater resources.
      • Smart / precision irrigation scheduling
      • Resource conservation, drainage, and reclamation techniques.
  • Significance:
    • Evaluation studies affirm that micro irrigation is crucial for meeting national priorities such as improved on-farm water use efficiency and enhanced crop productivity.
    • The scheme supports sustainable agriculture and helps in increasing farmers’ incomes through resource optimization.
  • The New Flexibility Mechanisms:
    • States / UTs can now plan micro water management interventions beyond the 20% cap as per local needs.
    • North Eastern / Himalayan States, and UTs of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, now get more flexibility to exceed the earlier 40% limit depending on requirement. 
    • Micro-level water management activities allowed include:
      • Construction of diggis (small water storage ponds)
      • Rainwater harvesting systems
      • Other local water conservation measures- at individual farmer level or community level.