Srinagar, Feb 22: At least 3,773 farmers in Jammu and Kashmir have not received their PM-KISAN instalments as their mandatory eKYC verification remains pending, according to official details accessed by Rising Kashmir, which show that over 33.19 lakh beneficiaries across the country are similarly flagged under the scheme.
The data places Jammu and Kashmir among the States and Union Territories where farmers are yet to complete electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) formalities under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme. In neighbouring Ladakh, 565 farmers are shown as pending eKYC compliance.
Nationally, 33,19,110 beneficiaries have pending eKYC, with Uttar Pradesh (11,18,964) accounting for the highest number, followed by West Bengal (2,85,640), Gujarat (2,74,424), Karnataka (2,05,455) and Rajasthan (1,91,367).
The figures indicate that while J&K’s numbers are modest compared to larger states, thousands in the UT remain outside the payment cycle due to incomplete verification.
The PM-KISAN scheme, launched in February 2019, provides ₹6,000 annually in three equal instalments to farmers with cultivable landholding, transferred directly into Aadhaar-seeded bank accounts through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). Cultivable landholding remains the primary eligibility criterion, subject to exclusions linked to higher economic status.
To ensure benefits reach only eligible and genuine beneficiaries, land seeding, Aadhaar-linked bank accounts and eKYC have been made mandatory. eKYC was introduced as a compulsory requirement from the 15th instalment cycle (August–November 2023) to authenticate beneficiaries and confirm that the recipient is alive.
According to the official details, 8.12 crore farmers who had completed eKYC received benefits during the 15th instalment cycle. By the 21st instalment released in November 2025, 9.35 crore beneficiaries had completed eKYC and received payments. Since inception, over ₹4.09 lakh crore has been disbursed through 21 instalments under the scheme.
The Centre has attributed pending eKYC cases not solely to technological failures but also to exclusion of ineligible beneficiaries and instances where beneficiaries may have died during the scheme period. It has maintained that as and when farmers complete mandatory requirements, benefits resume.
To address compliance gaps, several measures have been rolled out. Over five lakh Common Service Centres (CSCs) have been onboarded to facilitate registration and mandatory requirements, including eKYC. A face authentication-based eKYC facility was integrated into the PM-KISAN mobile application in June 2023, enabling beneficiaries, particularly the elderly and those in remote areas to complete verification from home and assist up to 100 other farmers.
Around one lakh Village Nodal Officers (VNOs), covering over four lakh villages, have also been designated by States and UTs to assist farmers in completing land seeding and eKYC formalities. A voice-based AI chatbot, Kisan e-Mitra, operational in 11 languages, has also been deployed to provide round-the-clock assistance to farmers on scheme-related queries, including guidance on completing eKYC.
