Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay SanraksHan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA)

What is PM-AASHA?

Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay SanraksHan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA) is an umbrella price assurance scheme of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. PM-AASHA exists to make sure a farmer growing pulses, oilseeds and copra actually receives the announced Minimum Support Price, and to keep the prices of essential commodities from swinging violently for consumers.

The Union Cabinet approved the continuation of PM-AASHA with an outlay of Rs 35,000 crore for the 15th Finance Commission cycle up to 2025-26, merging what had been separate price interventions into one integrated scheme. Because that approval period has now ended, farmers should confirm the current-year procurement notification for their crop and state on the e-Samridhi or e-Samyukti portal, since procurement operates season by season on the MSP announced for that year.

Key objectives

• Ensure remunerative prices to farmers for notified pulses, oilseeds and copra.
• Reduce distress sale below MSP when prices crash at harvest.
• Stabilise the retail price of essential commodities such as pulses and onion.
• Encourage cultivation of pulses and oilseeds and reduce import dependence.

Main features

• Four components in one umbrella: Price Support Scheme (PSS), Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS), Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) and Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF).
• Procurement of notified pulses, oilseeds and copra at MSP set at 25 per cent of national production, with 100 per cent procurement of tur, urad and masur announced for the 2024-25 season.
• PDPS coverage for notified oilseeds raised from 25 per cent to 40 per cent of state production, with the implementation period extended to four months.
• Implemented through central nodal agencies NAFED and NCCF, which run the e-Samridhi and e-Samyukti farmer registration portals.
• Payment by Direct Benefit Transfer to the farmer's Aadhaar-seeded bank account.

What are the four components of PM-AASHA?

Price Support Scheme (PSS). Government agencies physically procure notified pulses, oilseeds and copra from registered farmers at MSP when market prices fall below it. This is the component most farmers deal with directly.

Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS). Instead of buying the produce, the government pays the registered farmer the difference between the MSP and the actual sale price for notified oilseeds. Coverage was raised to 40 per cent of state production with a four-month implementation window.

Market Intervention Scheme (MIS). Used for perishable agricultural and horticultural commodities that fall outside MSP, where prices collapse sharply in a season. A state government requests intervention and procurement is taken up at a market intervention price.

Price Stabilisation Fund (PSF). The consumer-side arm. Buffer stocks of pulses and onion are built and released to smooth price spikes. PSF protects consumers, while PSS and PDPS protect farmers.

Who is eligible for PM-AASHA?

You can apply if:

• You are a farmer who has actually grown a notified crop, pulses, oilseeds or copra: in a state and season where procurement has been sanctioned.
• You have land records showing the sown area, and where your state requires it, a girdawari or sowing certificate from the patwari.
• You register on e-Samridhi or e-Samyukti before the procurement window opens. Pre-registration is what converts eligibility into an assured purchase.
• You hold an Aadhaar-seeded bank account in your own name for DBT payment.
• Your produce meets the Fair Average Quality (FAQ) norms notified for the crop.

You cannot apply if:

• You are a trader, commission agent or aggregator selling produce you did not grow. Procurement at MSP is for cultivating farmers only.
• Your crop is not notified for procurement in your state that season. A price fall in a non-notified crop does not create an entitlement.
• You did not register before the window opened. Unregistered farmers are generally turned away at the centre, since quantities are allotted against registrations.
• Your produce fails the FAQ quality check on moisture, foreign matter or damaged grain at the centre.
• You are offering a quantity beyond the limit worked out from your registered acreage and the notified yield. Excess quantity is not eligible.

What documents are required for PM-AASHA?

How to apply for PM-AASHA MSP procurement

1. Watch for the procurement announcement for your crop and state. The window is notified before harvest, and registration usually closes well before procurement ends.
2. Open NAFED's e-Samridhi portal or NCCF's e-Samyukti portal, or go through your primary agricultural cooperative society, which can register you on the same portals.
3. Register with your name, Aadhaar number, mobile number, land record details and bank account number with IFSC, and verify with the OTP sent to your mobile.
4. Declare the crop, sown area and expected quantity. The quantity you may sell is worked out from your registered acreage and the notified average yield, so declare the area accurately.
5. Wait for verification of the sowing entry by the revenue or agriculture official, and for approval of your registration.
6. Receive the slot or token for a notified procurement centre on a given date, and save the registration slip.
7. Bring the produce to the procurement centre on the allotted date. It is checked against Fair Average Quality norms for moisture, foreign matter and damaged grain, then weighed.
8. Collect the acknowledgement or purchase receipt after acceptance, and track the DBT payment into your Aadhaar-seeded bank account.

How much benefit does PM-AASHA provide?

PM-AASHA does not pay a fixed amount per farmer. The benefit is the notified Minimum Support Price for the quantity procured, which is announced separately for each crop and each marketing season by the Government of India on the recommendation of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices. Check the MSP notified for your crop and season before you sell — it changes every year.

Two figures define the scale of the intervention. Procurement of notified pulses, oilseeds and copra at MSP is set at 25 per cent of national production, and for the 2024-25 season the government announced 100 per cent procurement of tur, urad and masur from pre-registered farmers. Under PDPS, the compensation is the gap between MSP and the actual sale price for notified oilseeds, covering up to 40 per cent of state production.

How many farmers have registered on the PM-AASHA portals?

As reported in Parliament, registrations on the two central nodal agency portals crossed roughly 59.9 lakh farmers: about 44.10 lakh on NCCF's e-Samyukti and about 15.85 lakh on NAFED's e-Samridhi. Both agencies assured 100 per cent procurement at MSP from pre-registered farmers growing tur, urad, masur and maize. Registration figures are cumulative and are updated season by season, so treat them as an indication of scale rather than a current count.

Common reasons a PM-AASHA sale is rejected

• Not registered on e-Samridhi or e-Samyukti before the window closed.
• Produce fails FAQ norms: moisture above the notified limit is the single most frequent cause.
• Quantity exceeds the limit derived from registered acreage and notified yield.
• Land record or sowing entry mismatch with the crop declared.
• Bank account not Aadhaar-seeded or details not matching, delaying the DBT payment even after acceptance.
• Crop not notified for procurement in your state that season.

Help and grievance redressal for PM-AASHA

• Procurement centre in-charge: first stop for grading disputes, weighment and token issues.
• District collector or district marketing officer for escalation on procurement operations.
• NAFED and NCCF grievance channels on the e-Samridhi and e-Samyukti portals for registration and payment problems.
• Kisan Call Centre: 1800-180-1551, 6 am to 10 pm, replies in 22 languages.
• Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare portal, agriwelfare.gov.in, for scheme guidelines and MSP notifications.

Registration and procurement under PM-AASHA are free. No one is authorised to charge you for a token, a slot or a favourable grading, and MSP payment is made only into your own bank account.