Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAAGY)

What is Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojana?

Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAAGY) is a scheme of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs that aims to turn villages with a substantial tribal population into model villages (Adarsh Gram). PMAAGY is the revamped form of the older Special Central Assistance to Tribal Sub-Scheme (SCA to TSS), renamed and restructured for implementation from 2021-22 to 2025-26.

According to the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, PMAAGY covers 36,428 villages that have at least 50% tribal population and a minimum of 500 Scheduled Tribes, across all states and union territories with notified STs. These villages together hold a population of about 4.22 crore, roughly 40% of India's total tribal population.

PMAAGY works on a gap-filling and convergence model. Rather than duplicating what other schemes already deliver, each selected village first maps what it is missing across eight development sectors. Existing central and state schemes are then pulled in to close those gaps, and PMAAGY money: Rs 20.38 lakh per village; fills what nothing else covers.

Critically, PMAAGY is a village-level programme. No individual applies and no individual receives cash. Readers looking for a personal benefit under this name will not find one.

Key objectives

• Achieve integrated socio-economic development of villages with a significant tribal population through a convergence approach.
• Close infrastructure gaps in eight identified sectors so that each village meets a defined standard.
• Improve human development indicators; school enrolment, immunisation, nutrition, safe drinking water and sanitation; in tribal villages.
• Make village planning participatory by routing it through the Gram Sabha.

Main features

• 36,428 villages targeted, each with at least 50% ST population and 500 STs.
• Rs 20.38 lakh per village as gap-filling funds, inclusive of administrative expenses.
• Coverage of about 4.22 crore people, roughly 40% of the tribal population.
• Planning through a Village Development Plan approved by the Gram Sabha or Village Council.
• Oversight by a District Planning and Monitoring Committee and a State-level Working Committee.
• Convergence responsibility at village and district level rests with the state government.

The eight development sectors under PMAAGY

PMAAGY identifies gaps in these eight sectors for every selected village:

1. Road connectivity; internal village roads and inter-village or village-to-block connectivity.
2. Telecom connectivity: mobile signal and internet access.
3. School; availability and condition of school infrastructure.
4. Anganwadi centre, an operational centre for early childhood care and nutrition.
5. Health sub-centre. A functioning primary health facility within reach.
6. Drinking water facility. A safe and adequate source.
7. Drainage — village drainage to prevent waterlogging and disease.
8. Solid waste management: arrangements for collection and disposal.

A village is treated as an Adarsh Gram when the gaps across these eight domains have been closed to the standard set in the guidelines.

Who is eligible for PMAAGY?

PMAAGY is a village-selection scheme, so eligibility is assessed at the level of the village, not the person.

A village can be selected if:

• It has at least 50% tribal population.
• It has a minimum of 500 Scheduled Tribe residents.
• It lies in a state or union territory with notified Scheduled Tribes.
• It appears in the list drawn up by the state government and approved under the scheme, against the state's annual allocation of villages.

Who cannot apply:

• Individuals cannot apply for PMAAGY. There is no beneficiary registration, no cash transfer to a household and no personal subsidy under this scheme.
• Families are not eligible for a direct payment even if they live in a selected village. The Rs 20.38 lakh is a village-level fund for approved works.
• Villages below the 50% tribal population or 500 ST thresholds are not eligible, regardless of how poor their infrastructure is. Such villages must rely on other rural development schemes.
• Urban wards and municipal areas fall outside the scheme, which is designed for revenue villages and habitations.
• Villages with a majority Scheduled Caste population are not covered here, they fall under the separate Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAGY) of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

What documents are required for PMAAGY?

Individual villagers submit no documents. The papers below are institutional and are prepared by the village committee, the district administration and the state.

How to apply for PMAAGY works in your village

PMAAGY has no individual application form. The real route runs through the Gram Sabha and the district administration.

1. Check whether your village meets the criteria; at least 50% tribal population and a minimum of 500 Scheduled Tribes; from the census figures held with the panchayat secretary or the block office.
2. Ask the district Tribal Welfare Officer or the Project Officer of the Integrated Tribal Development Agency whether your village is on the state's selected list for the current year.
3. Attend the Gram Sabha where the Village Development Plan is discussed. This is the one place where a resident's voice formally counts. The VDP is prepared by villagers and approved by the Gram Sabha or Village Council.
4. Get your priority, a school building, a drinking water source, an internal road, a drain, recorded in the Gram Sabha resolution and reflected in the VDP's gap list.
5. Follow the plan as it moves to the District Planning and Monitoring Committee and then the State-level Working Committee for approval.
6. Track execution and demand that the utilisation certificate and works completed are read out in a subsequent Gram Sabha, which is the community's accountability check.

If your village is not yet on the list, the panchayat can send a written representation with the population figures to the district collector and the state tribal welfare department for consideration in a later year.

How much does PMAAGY provide per village?

PMAAGY provides Rs 20.38 lakh per village as gap-filling funds, and this figure includes administrative expenses for the scheme. The amount is deliberately modest, because PMAAGY's design assumes the bulk of the money comes from convergence; existing central and state schemes such as rural roads, drinking water, housing, electrification and anganwadi programmes are directed at the selected village first, and PMAAGY money then closes whatever remains.

That design is also the source of most confusion about the scheme. A village does not receive Rs 20.38 lakh in cash to spend freely; the money is released against activities approved in the Village Development Plan.

Who implements PMAAGY?

Implementation rests with the state government. Under PMAAGY, the responsibility for convergence at village and district level lies with the state, working through the district administration, the Integrated Tribal Development Agency or Project, and the panchayat.

Three bodies form the approval chain:

• The Gram Sabha or Village Council, which prepares and approves the Village Development Plan.
• The District Planning and Monitoring Committee, which vets and consolidates village plans.
• The State-level Working Committee, which gives the final state clearance before funds move.

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs sets the guidelines, releases funds to the states and monitors progress.

How to check PMAAGY progress for your village

1. Ask the panchayat secretary or Village Development Board for a copy of the approved Village Development Plan and the list of sanctioned works.
2. Approach the district Tribal Welfare Officer or ITDA Project Officer for the fund release and utilisation position.
3. Raise the item in the next Gram Sabha, which is entitled to review works and expenditure in the village.
4. File a written grievance on CPGRAMS (pgportal.gov.in) if works sanctioned under the plan are not executed.

Help and grievance redressal

• District Tribal Welfare Officer / ITDA Project Officer. The first point of contact for anything about a specific village
• State tribal welfare department, which holds the village selection list
• Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Shastri Bhawan, New Delhi: 011-23383303
• CPGRAMS (pgportal.gov.in) for a written grievance with a tracking number

No payment is required from any villager for a village to be selected under PMAAGY, and no agent can arrange selection or a sanction.