Crores of farmers across the country are awaiting the release of the 21st installment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme. The 20th installment of PM-KISAN was disbursed on August 2, 2025.
Expectations are high that the Modi government may announce the release of the next installment before the first phase of Bihar assembly polls, to be held on November 6. Under this scheme, farmers are provided with a financial assistance of Rs 6,000 every year — in three installments of Rs 2,000 each.
Meanwhile, reports have surfaced that the government has tightened the noose around fraud beneficiaries availing the benefits under the flagship scheme for farmers. Several reports suggest that the government has identified lakhs of illegal beneficiaries based on eligibility norms.
The Centre has intensified its verification and database clean-up drive detect such duplicate beneficiaries. The government action has left many beneficiaries worried if they will also have to return the money received in previous installments in case their names are removed from the new list. Because, the government has reportedly sent a recovery notice to many. But, here you must understand the specific reasons behind it.
Here’s this FAQ clearly answers who’s not eligible to get the PM-KISAN benefits:
Q. Who are not eligible to get benefits under the Scheme? (What are the Exclusion Criteria under the Scheme?)
Ans: The following categories of farmers are not eligible to get the benefits of the PM-KISAN Scheme
(a) All institutional land holders; and
(b) Farmer families in which one or more of its members belong to following categories:-
i. Former and present holders of constitutional posts;
ii. Former and present Ministers/State Ministers and former/present Members of Lok Sabha/ Rajya Sabha/ State Legislative Assemblies/ State
Legislative Councils, former and present Mayors of Municipal corporations, former and present chairpersons of District Panchayats.
iii. All serving or retired officers and employees of Central/State Government Ministries /Offices/Departments and its field units Central or State PSEs and Attached offices /Autonomous institutions under government as well as regular employees of the Local Bodies (Excluding Multi Tasking staff /Class lV/Group D employees)
iv. All superannuated/retired pensioners Rs 10,000/-or more(Excluding Multi Tasking Staff/ Class IV / Group D Employees)
V. All persons who paid income tax in the last assessment year;
vi. Professionals like Doctors, Engineers, Lawyers, Chartered Accountants, and Architects registered with professional bodies and carrying out profession by undertaking practices.
What is the PM-KISAN Scheme and what are its benefits?
Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PIV-KISAN) is a new Central Sector Scheme to provide income support to all landholding farmers’ families in the country to supplement their financial needs for procuring various inputs related to agriculture and allied activities as well as domestic needs. Under the Scheme, the entire financial liability towards transfer of benefit to targeted beneficiaries will be borne by the Government of India.
Under the PM-KISAN scheme, all landholding farmers’ families shall be provided the financial benefit of Rs 6,000 per annum per family payable in three equal installments of Rs 2,000 each, every four months.
Let’s understand when your PM Kisan installment may be stopped or you may be asked for a refund.
- If you are a taxpayer
If you are an income tax filer, meaning you have filed your income tax return, you are not eligible for the PM-KISAN scheme. This scheme is only for farmers who depend on agriculture income.
- Government or retired employee
If you are a government employee—in the central, state, or any government board, corporation, or institution—you are not covered under this scheme.
Sometimes, money is withdrawn in the name of a family member, but the government is now investigating such cases.
If it is found that someone in the family is in a government job, recovery action may be taken from that account.
- Bank account or Aadhaar not linked
Farmers’ installments could get delayed if their bank accounts are not linked to Aadhaar or NPCI. If your installment hasn’t arrived for a long time, be sure to check with your bank or the PM Kisan portal.
- Money disbursed in the name of a deceased or fake beneficiary
The government also discovered that in some cases, installments were being disbursed in the name of deceased farmers, or someone had obtained benefits by submitting fake documents. In all such cases, the money is now being recovered, and the relevant districts have been directed to recover the money.
- Only one member of a family should receive benefits
The rules under the PM-KISAN are clear — only one person from a family (husband, wife, and minor children) will receive the benefit. If money has been disbursed to two or more members of a family, the amount will be recovered from the other person.
- How to check if you’re eligible
To check your name status, visit https://pmkisan.gov.in and go to the “Beneficiary Status” or “Beneficiary List” section.
There, you can enter your mobile number or Aadhaar number to see if your installment has arrived and if your name is on the list of beneficiaries.
- What to do if you receive a recovery notice
If you’ve received a notice to refund your money, don’t panic.
-First, check if you’re actually eligible. If you received the money by mistake and you’re not eligible, you can refund the amount online — a “Refund Online” option is available on the PM Kisan portal.
According to Agriculture Ministry officials, the government’s goal is not to punish anyone, but to ensure that the scheme reaches the right farmers. In many cases, incorrect data or inadvertent errors resulted in funds being transferred to the wrong accounts. These issues are now being addressed to ensure genuine farmers don’t face any future benefits.
Summing up…
If you are a genuine farmer and meet the eligibility criteria, you have no need to worry. But if you mistakenly took advantage of the scheme—whether due to lack of information or for some other reason—the government can now recover the amount.
Providing correct information and keeping documents updated is crucial to ensuring you receive your installments on time.