- Why in news
- On 27 July 2026, Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju told the Rajya Sabha (Unstarred Question 913) about PMJVK's spending, third-party studies and mandatory quality audits.
- What it is
- PMJVK is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of the Ministry of Minority Affairs. It builds community infrastructure in Minority Concentration Areas. It covers health, education, skills, drinking water, sanitation, sports and other sectors.
- Type of scheme
- PMJVK is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme run by the Ministry of Minority Affairs.
- Demand-driven funding
- There is no State-wise or UT-wise allocation. Funds are released against eligible project proposals that meet the guidelines.
- Independent studies
- IIPA conducted an evaluation study and DMEO, NITI Aayog conducted an impact-cum-assessment study. They flagged awareness, fund flow, monitoring and asset maintenance as areas to improve.
- Quality assurance
- Third Party Quality Assurance is mandatory for all PMJVK projects in States and UTs.
Don’t confuse with Centrally Sponsored vs Central Sector scheme: In a Centrally Sponsored Scheme the Centre and States share the cost and States implement it. A Central Sector scheme is fully funded and run by the Centre.
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
- Builds basic services such as health, education and drinking water in areas with a high minority population, which helps reduce local development gaps.
Problems
- Spending swung widely between years, for example Rs 104.58 crore in 2022-23, which points to fund-flow problems.
- The studies flagged weak awareness, monitoring and maintenance of assets.
Way forward
- Speed up fund release and project approvals, and track asset upkeep after completion.
- Use the TPQA and the evaluation findings to improve monitoring and awareness.
Put in your answer
Independent evaluation: IIPA and NITI Aayog's DMEO assessed the scheme and pointed to gaps in awareness, fund flow, monitoring and maintenance.
- 2013Mains GS2 · Q12Critically evaluate restructuring of Centrally sponsored schemes for vulnerable sections' welfare.
- 2019Mains GS2 · Q18Discuss why welfare schemes for vulnerable sections are ineffective without awareness and involvement.
- 2023Mains GS2 · Q17Do you agree that welfare schemes for the vulnerable are discriminatory? Give reasons.
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: Centrally sponsored scheme for minority concentration areas; demand-driven and testable. Spending figures are routine, so no question is set here.
Worth revising until Prelims 2028: most news questions come within two years of the event.