Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY)

What is Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana?

Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) is a maternity benefit programme run by the Ministry of Women and Child Development as a component of the Samarthya sub-scheme of Mission Shakti. PMMVY pays a conditional cash incentive to pregnant women and lactating mothers to partly compensate for wage loss during pregnancy and to encourage institutional ante-natal care and infant immunisation.

According to the Ministry of Women and Child Development portal, PMMVY provides Rs 5,000 for the first living child in two instalments and Rs 6,000 for a second child provided that child is a girl. All money moves through Direct Benefit Transfer into an Aadhaar-seeded bank or post office account held in the mother's own name.

The scale of the programme is visible on the PMMVY dashboard, which reports 5.04 crore beneficiaries enrolled, 4.32 crore paid, and Rs 20,344 crore disbursed since inception.

Key objectives

• Compensate part of the wage loss a woman suffers before and after delivery so she can rest adequately.
• Improve health-seeking behaviour by tying payment to pregnancy registration, ante-natal check-ups and immunisation.
• Encourage families to value the girl child by paying a dedicated Rs 6,000 for a second child who is a girl.

Main features

• Centrally sponsored scheme delivered through the Anganwadi and ASHA network.
• Payment is conditional, each instalment has a specific health milestone.
• Aadhaar-based DBT, with no cash handling by any field functionary.
• Self-registration on the portal is available nationwide, alongside Anganwadi-assisted registration.

Who is eligible for PMMVY?

PMMVY eligibility works on two tests at once: an age test and a socio-economic category test. A woman must satisfy both.

You can apply if:

• You are a pregnant woman or lactating mother aged 18 years 7 months to under 55 years at the time of childbirth.
• You are claiming for your first living child, or for a second child who is a girl.
• You fall in at least one of the notified disadvantaged categories listed on the Ministry of Women and Child Development site:
• Women belonging to Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes
• Women with 40% or more disability (divyang)
• BPL ration card holders
• NFSA ration card holders
• MGNREGA job card holders
• e-Shram card holders
• PM Kisan Samman Nidhi beneficiary farmers
• Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY beneficiaries
• Pregnant and lactating Anganwadi workers, Anganwadi helpers and ASHAs
• Women whose net family income is below Rs 8 lakh per annum

You cannot apply if:

• You are in regular employment with the Central Government, a State Government or a public sector undertaking.
• You are already receiving similar maternity benefits under any other law, such as paid maternity leave under the Maternity Benefit Act.
• Your age at childbirth is below 18 years 7 months or 55 years and above.
• You are claiming for a second child who is a boy, or for a third or later child, no PMMVY instalment is payable in either case.
• You are attempting to register more than 270 days after childbirth.

Miscarriage and stillbirth are handled separately rather than as exclusions. The PMMVY FAQs state that a beneficiary who suffers a miscarriage or stillbirth is treated as a fresh beneficiary in the event of any future pregnancy, and retains any instalment already drawn.

What documents are required for PMMVY?

Only one eligibility proof is needed. A woman holding an MGNREGA job card, for example, does not additionally need an income certificate.

How to apply for PMMVY online

1. Open the official portal at pmmvy.wcd.gov.in and choose Citizen Login.
2. Register your mobile number and verify it with the OTP sent to that number, then set your login credentials.
3. Select the applicable form; first child, or second child who is a girl.
4. Enter your Aadhaar number and complete Aadhaar verification, then enter your name exactly as printed on the Aadhaar card.
5. Fill in the pregnancy details from your MCP card, including the LMP date and the dates of your ante-natal check-ups.
6. Enter the Aadhaar-seeded bank or post office account number and IFSC into which the instalments should be credited.
7. Upload the scanned eligibility proof and the MCP card, then submit the form and note the application reference number displayed on screen.
8. Return to the portal after delivery to enter the birth registration details and immunisation record, which triggers the second instalment for a first child or the single instalment for a second girl child.
9. Track progress at any time using Track Application Status on the portal home page.

How to apply for PMMVY offline

1. Visit your nearest Anganwadi Centre and meet the Anganwadi worker, or contact your area ASHA worker.
2. Carry your Aadhaar card, MCP/RCHI card, bank or post office passbook and one eligibility proof document.
3. Ask the worker to fill the PMMVY form for you — Anganwadi workers and ASHAs submit applications through the PMMVY portal and the field-functionary mobile app on the beneficiary's behalf.
4. Collect the acknowledgement and keep the application reference number for status checks.

How much benefit does PMMVY provide and when?

PMMVY payments are conditional, so each instalment is released only after a specific health milestone is recorded.

A woman who has a first child and later a second girl child can therefore draw Rs 11,000 in total. The Ministry notes that the timeline recognised for a delivery runs from LMP + 140 days to LMP + 300 days, which covers both pre-term and post-term births.

How to check PMMVY application and payment status

1. Open pmmvy.wcd.gov.in and select Track Application Status from the home page.
2. Enter your application reference number or registered mobile number.
3. Verify with the OTP sent to your registered mobile number.
4. Review the status screen, which shows whether each instalment is pending approval, approved, or paid.

If an instalment shows as approved but not credited, the problem is almost always at the bank end, usually an account that is not Aadhaar-seeded.

Why PMMVY payments get delayed or rejected

• Bank account not Aadhaar-seeded, so the DBT transfer fails.
• Account not in the mother's own name. A joint or husband's account is not accepted.
• Name mismatch between the Aadhaar record and the bank record.
• Ante-natal check-up or immunisation details missing from the MCP card entry, leaving the conditionality unmet.
• Eligibility proof not uploaded or illegible, so the application stalls at verification.
• Registration attempted beyond 270 days from childbirth.

Corrections to application data are made through the Anganwadi worker or the citizen login on the portal. Grievances can be raised through the Lodge / Track Grievances option on pmmvy.wcd.gov.in.

Help and grievance redressal

• PMMVY and POSHAN helpline: 1515, live since 1 November 2025 per the Ministry of Women and Child Development announcement. The earlier number 14408 still works during the transition.
• Grievance portal: Lodge / Track Grievances on pmmvy.wcd.gov.in
• Field support: your Anganwadi worker, ASHA worker or Child Development Project Officer

PMMVY registration is free at both the Anganwadi Centre and the portal. No Anganwadi worker, ASHA or agent may charge a fee for enrolling you, and no official will ask for your OTP or bank PIN.

How PMMVY relates to Janani Suraksha Yojana

PMMVY and Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) are separate programmes run by separate ministries. PMMVY is a conditional cash incentive from the Ministry of Women and Child Development tied to ante-natal care and immunisation, while JSY is a delivery-linked cash assistance administered by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for giving birth in a health facility.

The PMMVY implementation guidelines state that eligible beneficiaries also receive the cash incentive payable under JSY for institutional delivery, and that the JSY incentive is accounted towards maternity benefit so that a woman receives on average Rs 6,000 for the first child across the two schemes. Read the Janani Suraksha Yojana guide for the state-wise JSY amounts, which differ between low-performing and high-performing states and between rural and urban areas.