Patna: The Bihar government has announced that eligible farmers will continue to receive payments under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme even if they do not yet possess a Farmer ID, offering relief to thousands who had feared losing benefits due to administrative delays.
The clarification comes amid an ongoing state-wide campaign to generate Farmer IDs. Many cultivators have struggled to register because of land record discrepancies, including missing entries in jamabandi records, absence of partition documents, mutation-related disputes and technical glitches. Tenant farmers in particular had expressed concern that these obstacles could block access to the central government’s income support scheme.
In a post on X, agriculture minister Ramkripal Yadav said no eligible beneficiary would have payments withheld solely due to the absence of a Farmer ID. Under the PM Kisan scheme, farmers receive Rs 2,000 every three months. The state government has also launched the Jananayak Kisan Samman Yojana, promising an additional Rs 1,000 per quarter to eligible farmers, a move officials describe as strengthening rural incomes.
However, the department signalled that the relaxation is temporary. Farmers will eventually need a Farmer ID to ensure uninterrupted access to government schemes. According to officials, more than 4.5 million Farmer IDs have already been generated, and the process has been accelerated for those still pending. Authorities say the digital ID will streamline access to services, including quicker approvals for Kisan Credit Card loans.
The minister added that after the assembly session concludes, he will tour districts to engage directly with farmers, agricultural startups and innovators. The state is also drafting an agriculture-based startup policy aimed at positioning Bihar among leading agrarian economies.
Meanwhile, proposals have been submitted for Geographical Indication tags for several regional products, including Jardalu Malda from Digha, Sonalika rice from Shahabad, Titia paddy from Munger and Jardalu mango from Samastipur. Officials also said work is under way to upgrade 934 rural markets across the state, while new features are being added to the agriculture department’s app to simplify scheme information and applications at the panchayat level.
