- Why in news
- On 29 August 2026, PIB published a explainer on Per Drop More Crop (PDMC), reporting over 115 lakh hectares under micro irrigation as of July 2026 and new flexibility for states on water storage works.
- What it is
- Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) is a centrally sponsored scheme that gives financial help to farmers to install drip and sprinkler irrigation. It began in 2006 as a micro irrigation scheme, was named PDMC under PMKSY from 2015-16, and since 2022-23 runs under PM-RKVY. Its aim is more crop from each unit of water.
- Type and coverage
- PDMC is a centrally sponsored scheme supporting drip and sprinkler irrigation.
- Subsidy rates
- Small and marginal farmers get 55% assistance; other farmers get 45%.
- Repeat assistance
- Farmers can get assistance again for the same land after seven years.
- Implementation bodies
- The National Stewardship Council gives national direction; the State Level Sanctioning Committee approves state plans.
Don’t confuse with PDMC vs PMKSY: PMKSY is the wider irrigation scheme that housed PDMC in 2015-16 to 2021-22; PDMC now sits under PM-RKVY.
Don’t confuse with Drip vs sprinkler: Drip waters the root zone through emitters; sprinklers spray water under pressure through nozzles, simulating rain.
Schemes: 52 Prelims questions since 2013, 10 in Prelims 2026 alone. They test features, the period and who funds it. In Mains, 33 news-triggered questions, mostly GS3.
Why it matters
- Raises water use efficiency in a sector that uses over 80% of India's available water.
- Cuts input costs and raises farm income through fertigation and precise watering.
Problems
- Only about 8.11% of net sown area is covered, so reach is still limited.
- High upfront cost and dependence on state top-ups may restrict small farmers.
Way forward
- Link micro irrigation with solar pumps and local water storage.
- Prioritise groundwater-stressed regions and raise women's share, now about 20%.
- 2021Mains GS3 · Q4How and to what extent micro-irrigation can solve India's water crisis
- 2016Mains GS3 · Q7Define water-use efficiency and describe micro-irrigation's role in increasing it
- 2024Mains GS3 · Q13Challenges of Indian irrigation and government measures for efficient management
- 2011Prelims Q58Which micro-irrigation statements are correct: fertilizer loss, dryland, groundwater table
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
Prelims practice · Statements
Ours, not from a UPSC paper
Consider the following statements:
- 1.Per Drop More Crop is a centrally sponsored scheme that supports both drip and sprinkler irrigation.
- 2.Under Per Drop More Crop, small and marginal farmers receive 45% financial assistance and other farmers receive 55%.
- 3.Since 2022-23, Per Drop More Crop has been implemented under the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
True or false?
1 of 6
Statements the way Prelims prints them. Say first, then see the fact.
1.Per Drop More Crop is a centrally sponsored scheme that supports both drip and sprinkler irrigation.
True. It is a centrally sponsored scheme supporting drip and sprinkler systems.
2.Under PDMC, small and marginal farmers receive 45% financial assistance and other farmers receive 55%.
False. Small and marginal farmers get 55%; other farmers get 45%.
3.Since 2022-23, PDMC has been implemented under PM-RKVY.
True. PDMC is now a component of PM-RKVY.
4.A farmer who has received PDMC assistance can claim it again for the same land after three years.
False. The gap is seven years.
5.PM-RKVY, under which PDMC runs, was restructured in October 2024 as an umbrella scheme merging nine schemes.
True. The restructuring took place in October 2024 and merged nine schemes.
6.From 2015-16 to 2021-22, PDMC was implemented as a component of the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture.
False. In that period it was a core component of PMKSY; it was under NMSA only in 2014-15.
Written by us from the release, not by UPSC; checked by a second model.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.