- Why in news
- On 9 June 2026 the Ministry of Women and Child Development highlighted PMMVY's progress, citing 4.27 crore beneficiaries paid and ₹20,150 crore disbursed as on 30 April 2026.
- What it is
- PMMVY is a centrally sponsored maternity benefit scheme for pregnant women and lactating mothers. It gives cash support as partial wage compensation so women can rest before and after childbirth, and links payment to health milestones. It now runs under Mission Shakti.
- Launch
- The scheme was launched in 2017 as a flagship maternity benefit scheme.
- Mission Shakti
- Since 1 April 2022 PMMVY is integrated under Mission Shakti, and instalments were cut from three to two.
- Amount
- ₹5,000 in two instalments for the first living child; ₹6,000 for a second child if a girl.
- Delivery mode
- Money goes through Direct Benefit Transfer into bank accounts.
- Miscarriage or stillbirth
- The scheme allows fresh eligibility after miscarriage or stillbirth.
- Scale
- 4.27 crore beneficiaries paid as on 30 April 2026.
Don’t confuse with PMMVY vs Janani Suraksha Yojana: PMMVY is a wage-compensation maternity benefit of MWCD; JSY is a Health Ministry (NHM) cash incentive for institutional delivery.
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
- Partial wage compensation lets women rest before and after childbirth.
- Links cash to antenatal care and immunisation, improving maternal and child health.
- Extra benefit for a second girl child supports gender equity.
Problems
- Benefit amounts are small against wage loss and costs.
- Linkage with bank accounts, documents and registration can exclude poor women.
Way forward
- Raise benefit amounts and simplify documentation.
- Widen outreach to unorganised-sector women through frontline workers.
- 2016Mains GS4 · Q11Officer's dilemma helping destitute woman lacking eligibility documents
- 2019Prelims Q76Which statements on Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2017 provisions are correct?
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.Under the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, since its integration under Mission Shakti, the cash benefit is paid in three instalments.
- 2.The scheme pays ₹6,000 for a second child only if the child is a girl.
- 3.The scheme gives fresh eligibility to a woman after a miscarriage or stillbirth.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
True or false?
1 of 7
Statements the way Prelims prints them. Say first, then see the fact.
1.PMMVY was launched in 2017 as a maternity benefit scheme.
True. Launched in 2017.
2.Since April 2022 PMMVY has been integrated under Mission Shakti.
True. Integrated under Mission Shakti from 1 April 2022.
3.Under the revised scheme the benefit is paid in three instalments.
False. It was streamlined from three instalments to two.
4.The benefit for a second child is available irrespective of the child's sex.
False. The second-child benefit of ₹6,000 is only if the child is a girl.
5.Assistance is transferred to beneficiaries through the Direct Benefit Transfer mechanism.
True. Payment is via DBT into bank accounts.
6.A woman who suffers a miscarriage or stillbirth is permanently barred from claiming PMMVY benefits again.
False. The scheme gives fresh eligibility in such cases.
7.PMMVY is implemented by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
True. MWCD runs the scheme.
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.