Modi releases PM Kisan Nidhi instalment worth ₹20,000 crore after taking office: 'Fully committed'
As PM for 3rd time, PM Modi signs first file releasing 17th instalment of PM Kisan Nidhi benefiting 9.3 crore farmers with ₹20,000 crore.
PRIME Minister Narendra Modi, who took office for the third time on Monday, signed the first file for the ‘PM Kisan Nidhi' release. He inked the file authorising the release of the 17th instalment of PM Kisan Nidhi, which will benefit 9.3 crore farmers and distribute around ₹20,000 crores.
“Ours is a government fully committed to Kisan Kalyan. It is, therefore, fitting that the first file signed on taking charge is related to farmer welfare. We want to keep working even more for the farmers and the agriculture sector in the coming times," PM Modi said after signing the file.
The decision signifies the government's commitment to farmers' welfare following the ruling National Democratic Alliance's poll win, albeit with some setbacks, especially in rural India.
Modi was sworn in prime minister on Sunday for a record-equalling third term, heading a 72-member Union Council of Ministers. On Sunday, he chose continuity over radical change, placing his trust in top lieutenants Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nirmala Sitharaman, Nitin Gadkari, S. Jaishankar and Piyush Goyal in the Union cabinet.
Key allies Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Janata Dal (United) secured one cabinet post each, as Modi took charge as the head of a coalition government.
Apart from TDP and JD(U), other allies in the National Democratic Alliance who have secured cabinet posts include TDP, JD(U), Janata Dal (Secular), Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) and Lok Janshakti Party.
Chirag Paswan, national president of Lok Janshakti Party, performed robustly in the Lok Sabha election, winning all the five seats it contested, and was also included in the cabinet. Chirag Paswan is the son of the former cabinet minister Ram Vilas Paswan and founder of the LJP.
The latest Modi cabinet is much larger than the previous two NDA cabinets to accommodate the allies who are expected to play a bigger role in the new government, given that the BJP has been unable to cross the majority mark on its own.
