What is PKVY and which ministry runs it?

Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) is the Government of India's flagship cluster-based organic farming promotion scheme, launched in 2015–16 as a sub-component of the Soil Health Management (SHM) programme under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA). It is administered by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India, in convergence with state agriculture / organic-farming departments and the National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming (NCONF), Ghaziabad. The revamped operational guidelines effective from 2018 onward shape the current implementation pattern.

Who is eligible — what does the cluster approach actually mean?

PKVY does not enrol individual farmers directly; it works through clusters. A cluster typically consists of around 50 farmers covering approximately 50 hectares of contiguous or near-contiguous land, with a minimum participation of 1 hectare per farmer. Up to ~2 hectares per farmer are eligible for financial assistance under the scheme. Farmers willing to convert from chemical to organic farming over a three-year cycle, organised under a Local Group, register through the State Nodal Agency. The cluster becomes the operational and certification unit; PGS-India certification is awarded at the cluster / Local Group level, not to individuals in isolation.

How much financial assistance does PKVY provide and how is it broken up?

Per the DA&FW operational guidelines, PKVY provides financial assistance of up to ₹50,000 per hectare over the three-year conversion cycle. Of this, approximately ₹31,000 per hectare is direct support to the farmer — released via Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into the Aadhaar-linked bank account — to meet on-farm costs of organic inputs (bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides, vermicompost units, botanical extracts, traditional inputs), seed, and on-farm processing. The remainder (~₹19,000 per hectare) is used for PGS-India certification charges, capacity building, value addition, packaging, branding and marketing support routed through the State Nodal Agency / Regional Council. Exact line-item allocations may vary between component years and state implementation plans; always verify with the current guideline copy on agriwelfare.gov.in.

What is PGS-India certification and how is it different from NPOP / APEDA?

Participatory Guarantee System of India (PGS-India) is a domestic, peer-review-based organic certification framework administered by the National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming (NCONF), Ghaziabad, through Regional Councils and Local Groups. Certification is awarded by the farmers' own peer group, with the Regional Council overseeing compliance. PGS-India is recognised for the Indian domestic organic market. By contrast, the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP), administered by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), is a third-party certification framework recognised for exports — it requires accredited certification bodies, not peer review. PKVY uses PGS-India by design; farmers aiming at export markets typically pursue NPOP / APEDA certification separately.

What is the three-year conversion cycle?

Land that has been under chemical farming cannot be marketed as 'organic' immediately. Under PKVY, registered clusters go through a three-year conversion cycle from chemical to organic farming. In Year 1 the focus is soil preparation, withdrawal of synthetic inputs, introduction of bio-inputs and traditional practices; produce in this period is treated as 'in-conversion'. By the end of Year 3, on completion of the prescribed peer-review and Regional Council inspections, the cluster's produce can be marketed as PGS-India 'Organic' (Green certification). The financial assistance is also phased across these three years to match the on-farm cash-flow needs of conversion.

What is the cost-share between the centre and states?

PKVY follows the standard centrally-sponsored scheme cost-share pattern under NMSA: 60:40 between the Government of India and general states, 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan states (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir / Ladakh per latest notifications), and 100% central funding for Union Territories without a legislature. State Nodal Agencies execute the scheme on the ground.

How does PKVY converge with MOVCDNER, BPKP, NMNF and the Soil Health Card scheme?

PKVY is one of several Government of India organic / natural farming instruments and is designed to converge with them rather than overlap. Mission Organic Value Chain Development for the North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER) covers the eight NE states with a value-chain focus and larger per-cluster assistance. Bharatiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati (BPKP), now subsumed into the National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF), promotes the natural farming approach (zero-budget / cow-based). The Soil Health Card scheme provides soil-test-based nutrient recommendations that PKVY clusters use to plan their bio-input regime. State implementation plans typically map non-overlapping clusters across PKVY / MOVCDNER / NMNF so the same hectare is not double-funded.

How does a farmer or Local Group apply for PKVY?

The cluster route is: (1) Farmers organise themselves into a Local Group of around 50 members, identify ~50 hectares of contiguous land, and elect a Lead Resource Person. (2) The Local Group registers with the State Nodal Agency (typically the State Department of Agriculture / Horticulture or the State Organic Mission). (3) The State Nodal Agency forwards the cluster to the relevant Regional Council under NCONF for PGS-India enrolment on the pgsindia-ncof.gov.in portal. (4) On approval, the cluster receives capacity building, bio-input support and DBT to member farmers' Aadhaar-linked bank accounts. (5) Peer-review inspections happen each year; on successful completion of the three-year cycle the cluster is awarded PGS Green (Organic) certification. Individual farmers cannot apply directly — they must join a Local Group.

What are the common reasons applications stall or assistance is withheld?

Common stalls: (a) cluster size below the prescribed threshold or scattered land that does not form a viable peer-review unit; (b) member farmers continuing to use synthetic inputs during the conversion cycle — picked up at peer-review inspection and leading to suspension; (c) Aadhaar–bank account name mismatch blocking DBT of the per-hectare farmer share; (d) failure to register on the PGS-India portal in time, delaying Regional Council recognition; (e) the same land being claimed under MOVCDNER / NMNF in parallel — only one scheme can fund a given hectare; (f) absence of soil test records / Soil Health Cards needed for the cluster's organic conversion plan.

Where do I escalate grievances and get current PKVY information?

First port of call is the State Nodal Agency for the relevant state (typically a Director of Organic Farming or the Joint Director under the State Department of Agriculture). The Regional Council under NCONF handles certification-related queries. National-level information, guidelines and progress dashboards are published on agriwelfare.gov.in (Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare) and ncof.dacnet.nic.in (National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming). For PGS-India certification status, Local Group registration and peer-review records, the authoritative portal is pgsindia-ncof.gov.in.

PKVY Guide — Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana: Cluster-Based Organic Farming, PGS-India Certification & ₹50,000/ha Three-Year Assistance

PKVY (Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana)is the Government of India's flagship cluster-based organic farming promotion scheme, launched in 2015–16 as a sub-component of the Soil Health Management (SHM) programme under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA). Administered by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW), it works at the cluster level — typically 50 farmers covering ~50 hectares — over a three-year conversion cycle from chemical to organic farming, backed by financial assistance of up to ₹50,000 per hectare and the Participatory Guarantee System of India (PGS-India) peer-review certification administered through the National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming (NCONF), Ghaziabad. This guide covers eligibility, cluster formation, the PGS-India certification flow, the per-hectare assistance break-up, centre-state cost-share, convergence with MOVCDNER / BPKP / NMNF / Soil Health Card, the application process via the State Nodal Agency and pgsindia-ncof.gov.in, and common reasons assistance stalls. For the wider scheme portfolio see our India government schemes for farmers reference, and for the soil-side intake see the Soil Health Card deep-dive.

At a glance

Scheme type: centrally-sponsored sub-component of NMSA's Soil Health Management programme — cluster-based organic farming promotion.
Launched: 2015–16 by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare; revamped operational guidelines effective from 2018 onward.
Cluster size: ~50 farmers covering ~50 hectares (1 hectare minimum per farmer, up to ~2 hectares eligible for assistance).
Conversion cycle: 3 years from chemical to organic, with phased assistance and peer-review inspections each year.
Financial assistance: up to ₹50,000 per hectare over three years — of which ~₹31,000/ha is direct DBT to the farmer for on-farm costs and the balance funds PGS-India certification, value addition, branding and marketing.
Certification: PGS-India peer-review framework administered by NCONF, Ghaziabad — distinct from NPOP / APEDA third-party certification used for exports.
Cost-share: 60:40 centre-state for general states, 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan states, 100% central for UTs without a legislature.
Portals: pgsindia-ncof.gov.in (PGS-India certification), agriwelfare.gov.in (DA&FW), ncof.dacnet.nic.in (NCONF).

Eligibility — who can join

PKVY does not enrol individual farmers directly. The unit of enrolment, assistance and certification is the cluster:

Cluster size: approximately 50 farmers with contiguous or near-contiguous land aggregating to ~50 hectares. Smaller clusters may be permitted in hilly / tribal terrain at the State Nodal Agency's discretion.
Per-farmer landholding: minimum 1 hectare participation; financial assistance is admissible for up to ~2 hectares per farmer.
Local Group: the cluster is organised under a Local Group of farmers — the basic operational and peer-review unit of PGS-India — with an elected Lead Resource Person.
Commitment: all member farmers must agree in writing to withdraw synthetic chemical inputs and follow the organic package of practices for the entire three-year conversion cycle. Continued chemical use by any member triggers peer-review suspension.
No double funding: the same hectare cannot be enrolled under PKVY and MOVCDNER / NMNF / BPKP at the same time. State implementation plans map non-overlapping clusters.

Headline benefits

Financial assistance: up to ₹50,000 per hectare over the three-year conversion cycle, phased across years to match on-farm cash-flow.
Direct farmer share (DBT): approximately ₹31,000 per hectare credited to the farmer's Aadhaar-linked bank account for organic inputs (bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides, vermicompost units, botanical extracts), seed, and on-farm processing costs.
Cluster-level support: the balance (~₹19,000/ha) covers PGS-India certification charges, capacity building of the Local Group, value addition equipment, packaging, branding and marketing — typically routed through the State Nodal Agency and the Regional Council under NCONF.
PGS-India certification: on successful completion of the three-year cycle, the cluster's produce becomes eligible to carry the PGS-India Green (Organic) mark.
Soil and water co-benefits: reduced synthetic-input load, better soil organic carbon, and improved water-use efficiency — pairs naturally with the Soil Health Card recommendations.

The PGS-India certification framework

PKVY relies on the Participatory Guarantee System of India (PGS-India) — a domestic, peer-review-based organic certification framework distinct from the third-party NPOP / APEDA certification used for exports. The architecture is:

Local Group: the operational unit at the village / cluster level. Members inspect each other's farms (peer review) and maintain the PGS-India registers.
Regional Council: a state / region-level body recognised by NCONF that aggregates Local Groups, oversees the peer-review process and issues PGS certificates.
NCONF: the National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming, Ghaziabad — the apex body for PGS-India, hosting the portal pgsindia-ncof.gov.in for Regional Council and Local Group registration, certificate issuance and the public PGS database.
Certification stages: Year 1 produce is recorded as in-conversion. By Year 3, on successful annual peer-review inspections, the cluster's produce qualifies as PGS Green (Organic).
Cost to the farmer: PGS-India certification under PKVY is funded by the scheme, not paid out of pocket by the farmer.

For farmers aiming at export markets, the third-party NPOP / APEDA certification is additionally required — PGS-India is recognised for the Indian domestic market. Many clusters operate both certifications in parallel as they mature.

Financial assistance — three-year break-up

The headline ₹50,000 per hectare is spread across three years and across the on-farm and cluster-level heads as set out in the DA&FW operational guidelines:

Direct support to farmer (DBT, ~₹31,000/ha): bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides, vermicompost units, botanical extracts, traditional / organic seed, and labour for organic on-farm activities.
PGS-India certification (~₹2,700/ha): Regional Council fees, peer-review inspections, documentation and database maintenance.
Cluster-level support (~₹16,300/ha): capacity building, training, exposure visits, value addition equipment, packaging, branding, and marketing routed through the State Nodal Agency / Regional Council.

Exact line-item allocations may vary between component years and state implementation plans — applicants and Local Groups should consult the latest PKVY operational guideline on agriwelfare.gov.in and the State Nodal Agency's circular for the current financial year.

Centre-state cost-share

General states: 60:40 between the Government of India and the state.
North-Eastern and Himalayan states: 90:10 between the centre and the state — covering Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and J&K / Ladakh as per latest notifications.
Union Territories without a legislature: 100% central funding.

Convergence with other organic and farmer-welfare schemes

PKVY does not stand alone — it is part of a wider organic / natural farming and soil-health stack:

Mission Organic Value Chain Development for the North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER): covers the eight NE states with a Farmer Producer Company-anchored value-chain focus, larger per-FPC assistance and NPOP / APEDA third-party certification (the standard required for organic exports). State plans avoid double-counting PKVY and MOVCDNER hectares.
Bharatiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati (BPKP) / National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF): promotes the natural farming (cow-based / zero-budget) approach. BPKP has been subsumed into NMNF — now a standalone centrally-sponsored scheme since November 2024 — in the current cycle. A cluster typically chooses either PKVY (organic) or NMNF (natural farming) for a given hectare.
Soil Health Card scheme: the soil test results form the baseline for the cluster's organic conversion plan — see our Soil Health Card deep-dive.
PMKSY Per Drop More Crop: on-farm micro-irrigation that complements organic conversion by improving water-use efficiency; see our PMKSY-PDMC guide.
PMFME: value-addition support for the cluster's organic produce can be pursued under PMFME (micro food processing).
PMFBY: the cluster can still cover its in-conversion crop under PMFBY against yield-loss risk; organic certification does not bar crop insurance.
PM-KISAN: independent income-support of ₹6,000/year — see the PM-KISAN guide.

How to apply — step by step

Form a Local Group of around 50 farmers with contiguous land aggregating to ~50 hectares. Elect a Lead Resource Person.
Approach the State Nodal Agency — typically the State Department of Agriculture / Horticulture, a State Organic Mission, or a designated Director of Organic Farming — with the list of member farmers, landholdings, Aadhaar and bank details, and the latest Soil Health Card data.
The State Nodal Agency forwards the cluster to the Regional Council under NCONF for PGS-India enrolment on pgsindia-ncof.gov.in.
On approval, the cluster receives capacity-building support, bio-inputs and the per-hectare direct share via DBT to member farmers' Aadhaar-linked bank accounts; cluster-level funds flow through the Regional Council / State Nodal Agency.
Peer-review inspections happen each year. Year 1 produce is recorded as in-conversion; on successful completion of Year 3 the cluster is awarded PGS Green (Organic) certification.
Branding, packaging and marketing support follows certification, including support for participation in organic fairs and linkage to state organic retail chains.

Common pitfalls and what to watch

Cluster size below threshold or land too scattered for a viable peer-review unit — re-form the Local Group with more contiguous holdings.
Continued chemical input use by a member during the conversion cycle — picked up at peer-review and triggers suspension of the cluster's PGS status.
Aadhaar–bank account name mismatch blocks DBT of the per-hectare farmer share. Rectify with the bank before the State Nodal Agency releases funds.
Late registration on the PGS-India portal delays Regional Council recognition and pushes back the start of the three-year clock.
Double-funding overlap: the same hectare cannot be claimed under MOVCDNER / NMNF in parallel — confirm the state plan boundary before applying.
Missing Soil Health Card / baseline soil data — needed for the cluster's organic conversion plan; trigger a fresh sampling round through the Soil Health Card scheme if absent.
Confusion between PGS-India and NPOP: PGS-India suffices for domestic sale; NPOP / APEDA is needed only for export. Clusters aiming at export should plan NPOP certification separately.

How PKVY fits into the wider farmer-welfare stack

PKVY is the organic-farming rung of the farmer-welfare architecture, and is meant to be stacked with the rest of the portfolio rather than viewed in isolation. Pair PKVY with a Soil Health Card baseline for the conversion plan, with a Kisan Credit Card for working-capital needs during conversion, with PMFBY for yield-loss cover on the in-conversion crop, and with PMFME for value addition once the cluster has its PGS Green certificate. Income support under PM-KISAN remains independent of the organic conversion. For deeper agronomic advisories, crop-wise organic packages of practice and traditional input recipes, see the knowledge base.

References

pgsindia-ncof.gov.in — PGS-India certification portal: Regional Council and Local Group registration, peer-review records, certificate database.
agriwelfare.gov.in — Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, the administrative ministry for PKVY and NMSA.
ncof.dacnet.nic.in — National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming (NCONF), Ghaziabad — the apex body for PGS-India.
Press Information Bureau (PIB) — PKVY launch and progress press releases; NMSA / SHM operational guidelines.
State Nodal Agencies — typically the State Department of Agriculture / Horticulture or a designated State Organic Mission. Contact details are on each state agriculture department's portal.

Frequently asked questions

What is PKVY and which ministry runs it?: Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) is the Government of India's flagship cluster-based organic farming promotion scheme, launched in 2015–16 as a sub-component of the Soil Health Management (SHM) programme under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA). It is administered by the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare (DA&FW), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India, in convergence with state agriculture / organic-farming departments and the National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming (NCONF), Ghaziabad. The revamped operational guidelines effective from 2018 onward shape the current implementation pattern.
Who is eligible — what does the cluster approach actually mean?: PKVY does not enrol individual farmers directly; it works through clusters. A cluster typically consists of around 50 farmers covering approximately 50 hectares of contiguous or near-contiguous land, with a minimum participation of 1 hectare per farmer. Up to ~2 hectares per farmer are eligible for financial assistance under the scheme. Farmers willing to convert from chemical to organic farming over a three-year cycle, organised under a Local Group, register through the State Nodal Agency. The cluster becomes the operational and certification unit; PGS-India certification is awarded at the cluster / Local Group level, not to individuals in isolation.
How much financial assistance does PKVY provide and how is it broken up?: Per the DA&FW operational guidelines, PKVY provides financial assistance of up to ₹50,000 per hectare over the three-year conversion cycle. Of this, approximately ₹31,000 per hectare is direct support to the farmer — released via Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into the Aadhaar-linked bank account — to meet on-farm costs of organic inputs (bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides, vermicompost units, botanical extracts, traditional inputs), seed, and on-farm processing. The remainder (~₹19,000 per hectare) is used for PGS-India certification charges, capacity building, value addition, packaging, branding and marketing support routed through the State Nodal Agency / Regional Council. Exact line-item allocations may vary between component years and state implementation plans; always verify with the current guideline copy on agriwelfare.gov.in.
What is PGS-India certification and how is it different from NPOP / APEDA?: Participatory Guarantee System of India (PGS-India) is a domestic, peer-review-based organic certification framework administered by the National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming (NCONF), Ghaziabad, through Regional Councils and Local Groups. Certification is awarded by the farmers' own peer group, with the Regional Council overseeing compliance. PGS-India is recognised for the Indian domestic organic market. By contrast, the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP), administered by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), is a third-party certification framework recognised for exports — it requires accredited certification bodies, not peer review. PKVY uses PGS-India by design; farmers aiming at export markets typically pursue NPOP / APEDA certification separately.
What is the three-year conversion cycle?: Land that has been under chemical farming cannot be marketed as 'organic' immediately. Under PKVY, registered clusters go through a three-year conversion cycle from chemical to organic farming. In Year 1 the focus is soil preparation, withdrawal of synthetic inputs, introduction of bio-inputs and traditional practices; produce in this period is treated as 'in-conversion'. By the end of Year 3, on completion of the prescribed peer-review and Regional Council inspections, the cluster's produce can be marketed as PGS-India 'Organic' (Green certification). The financial assistance is also phased across these three years to match the on-farm cash-flow needs of conversion.
What is the cost-share between the centre and states?: PKVY follows the standard centrally-sponsored scheme cost-share pattern under NMSA: 60:40 between the Government of India and general states, 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan states (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir / Ladakh per latest notifications), and 100% central funding for Union Territories without a legislature. State Nodal Agencies execute the scheme on the ground.
How does PKVY converge with MOVCDNER, BPKP, NMNF and the Soil Health Card scheme?: PKVY is one of several Government of India organic / natural farming instruments and is designed to converge with them rather than overlap. Mission Organic Value Chain Development for the North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER) covers the eight NE states with a value-chain focus and larger per-cluster assistance. Bharatiya Prakritik Krishi Paddhati (BPKP), now subsumed into the National Mission on Natural Farming (NMNF), promotes the natural farming approach (zero-budget / cow-based). The Soil Health Card scheme provides soil-test-based nutrient recommendations that PKVY clusters use to plan their bio-input regime. State implementation plans typically map non-overlapping clusters across PKVY / MOVCDNER / NMNF so the same hectare is not double-funded.
How does a farmer or Local Group apply for PKVY?: The cluster route is: (1) Farmers organise themselves into a Local Group of around 50 members, identify ~50 hectares of contiguous land, and elect a Lead Resource Person. (2) The Local Group registers with the State Nodal Agency (typically the State Department of Agriculture / Horticulture or the State Organic Mission). (3) The State Nodal Agency forwards the cluster to the relevant Regional Council under NCONF for PGS-India enrolment on the pgsindia-ncof.gov.in portal. (4) On approval, the cluster receives capacity building, bio-input support and DBT to member farmers' Aadhaar-linked bank accounts. (5) Peer-review inspections happen each year; on successful completion of the three-year cycle the cluster is awarded PGS Green (Organic) certification. Individual farmers cannot apply directly — they must join a Local Group.
What are the common reasons applications stall or assistance is withheld?: Common stalls: (a) cluster size below the prescribed threshold or scattered land that does not form a viable peer-review unit; (b) member farmers continuing to use synthetic inputs during the conversion cycle — picked up at peer-review inspection and leading to suspension; (c) Aadhaar–bank account name mismatch blocking DBT of the per-hectare farmer share; (d) failure to register on the PGS-India portal in time, delaying Regional Council recognition; (e) the same land being claimed under MOVCDNER / NMNF in parallel — only one scheme can fund a given hectare; (f) absence of soil test records / Soil Health Cards needed for the cluster's organic conversion plan.
Where do I escalate grievances and get current PKVY information?: First port of call is the State Nodal Agency for the relevant state (typically a Director of Organic Farming or the Joint Director under the State Department of Agriculture). The Regional Council under NCONF handles certification-related queries. National-level information, guidelines and progress dashboards are published on agriwelfare.gov.in (Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare) and ncof.dacnet.nic.in (National Centre for Organic and Natural Farming). For PGS-India certification status, Local Group registration and peer-review records, the authoritative portal is pgsindia-ncof.gov.in.

Cluster norms, per-hectare assistance break-up, cost-share ratios and certification rules above summarise the publicly available PKVY operational guidelines and PGS-India circulars on agriwelfare.gov.in and pgsindia-ncof.gov.in. Line-item allocations and component-year emphases are revised periodically; Local Groups and State Nodal Agencies should verify current terms before drawing the per-hectare assistance or enrolling a new cluster.