Rythu Bandhu Scheme – Telangana (farmer investment support)

✦Key Features

• Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) of financial assistance to farmers' bank accounts.
• Investment support of a fixed amount per acre per season.
• Provided twice a year, for both Kharif and Rabi cropping seasons.
• No loan component; it is a direct grant to support input costs.
• Covers all land-owning farmers in Telangana, including small and marginal farmers.

✓Eligibility Criteria

• Must be a land-owning farmer in Telangana state.
• Possession of a valid Pattadar Passbook (land passbook).
• Farmers with cultivable land are eligible (some exclusions apply for certain land types).

★Benefits

• Financial assistance for purchasing seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, and other inputs.
• Relief from the burden of taking loans from informal sources at high interest rates.
• Improved agricultural output and better crop yields due to timely investment.
• Enhanced financial stability and welfare for farming families.

▶Application Process

• Eligible land-owning farmers are automatically identified based on land records.
• The Agriculture Department, in coordination with the Revenue Department, prepares beneficiary lists.
• Financial assistance is directly transferred to the registered bank accounts of the eligible farmers.
• No separate application is generally required from the farmers themselves for enrollment.

₹ Budget Allocation

700

Funding Ratio (Centre:State): 100% State Funded

Historical Context

Launched in May 2018 by the Telangana Government to address agrarian distress and the debt cycle caused by high-interest private loans for seeds and fertilizers.