India, March 16 -- Under financial strain on account of doling out various freebies, the Mahayuti government, in order to ease the pressure on general budgetary provisions, has decided to once more use funds from the sub-plan for scheduled castes (SC) and scheduled tribes (ST). Under the 'Namo Shetkari Maha Sanman Nidhi' (NSMSN), it will pay Rs.6,000 to SC and ST farmers, and is expected to save over Rs.1,000 crores from the general budget provisions.

The Mahayuti government launched the NSMSN scheme in October 2023, six months before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, to pay an additional Rs.6,000 per annum to farmers who were already receiving this amount from the Centre's PM-Kisan scheme. The funds came from the state government's general ...