Why in News?

The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment highlighted the progress of the Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana (PM-AJAY), including the recent launch of the PM-AJAY Mobile App and Portal to facilitate faster, transparent and quality implementation of the scheme.

About PM-AJAY

  • Type: 100% Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS)
  • Launch: FY 2021-22
  • Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment
  • Objective: Socio-economic and educational empowerment of Scheduled Castes (SCs) through an integrated development approach — reducing poverty, improving infrastructure in SC-dominated areas and increasing access to education.
  • Genesis: Created by merging three erstwhile centrally sponsored schemes:
  • Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAGY)
  • Special Central Assistance to Scheduled Castes Sub Plan (SCA to SCSP)
  • Babu Jagjivan Ram Chhatrawas Yojana (BJRCY)

Eligibility Criteria

  • Grants-in-Aid (GIA) component: Priority to SC families/persons with annual income not more than ₹2.50 lakh; SC members of SC-majority groups are also eligible.
  • Infrastructure Development component: Villages with 40% or more SC population and a total population of 500 or more are eligible for grants.

Funding Pattern

  • Up to 50% — gap-filling activities in selected Adarsh Gram villages
  • 5% — Technical Support Group (TSG) and Project Implementation Units (PIUs)
  • 2% — hostel construction and repair
  • Remaining funds — Grants-in-Aid for State/District-level projects based on SC population and State Scheduled Caste Sub Plan (SCSP) parameters
  • Completed infrastructure projects are maintained by State Governments or implementing agencies.

Major Components of PM-AJAY

1. Development of SC-Dominated Villages into "Adarsh Gram"

  • Seeks to transform SC-majority villages into model villages by filling critical gaps in infrastructure and essential services.
  • An Adarsh Gram envisages access to basic services, fulfilment of minimum needs, reduced socio-economic disparities and essential infrastructure for a dignified quality of life.

2. Grants-in-Aid for Socio-Economic Projects

  • Financial assistance to States/Districts for livelihood generation, skill development, infrastructure creation in SC-dominated villages, and education promotion through residential facilities.
  • Over ₹1,730 crore released to States from FY 2021-22 to FY 2025-26, benefiting more than 2.5 lakh individual and group beneficiaries.

3. Construction and Repair of Hostels

  • Facilitates access to quality education for SC students, particularly from rural and remote areas.
  • As of September 2026, a total of 785 student hostels had been completed.
  • For FY 2026-27, ₹61.46 crore in central assistance allocated for two hostel projects — one for girls and one for boys — accommodating 264 students.

Digital Governance under PM-AJAY

  • Launch of the PM-AJAY Mobile App and PM-AJAY Portal to shift implementation from paper-based workflows to an end-to-end digital and real-time workflow.
  • Expected to strengthen transparency, accountability, monitoring and efficiency through improved access to information, data-driven decision-making and better stakeholder coordination.

Significance for India and Governance

  • Targeted social justice: Addresses historical socio-economic disadvantages of SCs through integrated livelihood, infrastructure and education interventions.
  • Convergence: Merging three schemes reduces fragmentation and improves fund utilisation.
  • Digital public governance: Real-time monitoring aligns with the broader push for e-governance and Minimum Government, Maximum Governance.
  • Inclusive growth: Contributes to inclusive development under Viksit Bharat @2047.
  • Aligns with Article 46 (DPSP) — promotion of educational and economic interests of SCs, STs and weaker sections — and Article 15(4) enabling special provisions for their advancement.

Related Constitutional Provisions

  • Article 341: Provides for notification of Scheduled Castes by the President (Clause 1) and Parliament's power to include/exclude (Clause 2).
  • Article 338: Constitutes the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) to investigate and monitor safeguards.
  • Article 46: DPSP directing the State to promote educational and economic interests of weaker sections and protect them from social injustice.
  • Article 15(4) & Article 16(4A): Special provisions for advancement of socially and educationally backward classes and reservation in services.

UPSC PYQs (Mains)

  • 2014: In 2001, RGI stated that Dalits who converted to Islam or Christianity are not a single ethnic group as they belong to different caste groups; therefore they cannot be included in the SC list as per Clause (2) of Article 341, which requires a single ethnic group for inclusion.
  • 2018: Whether the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) can enforce the implementation of constitutional reservation for SCs in religious minority institutions? Examine.

Drishti Mains Question

Q. "Social justice requires not only equal opportunities but also targeted interventions to address historical socio-economic disadvantages." Discuss in the context of the Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana (PM-AJAY).