NEW DELHI, July 29 — Maharashtra has become the first state in the country to qualify for the release of the second instalment under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, after clearing the fund-utilisation benchmark set by the central government.
The decision came out of a virtual review meeting chaired by Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, which assessed how effectively states have been spending funds released under the scheme. Maharashtra had received ₹335 crore as its first instalment and went on to utilise close to ₹260 crore of it, comfortably clearing the mandated 75 percent utilisation threshold and unlocking a second tranche of the same amount.
RKVY, running since 2007-08, gives states flexibility to design their own agriculture and allied-sector development projects rather than following a one-size-fits-all central template. The scheme's funding pattern shifted from fully central funding to a shared model in 2015-16, with the centre and states now splitting costs 60:40 in most states, 90:10 in northeastern and Himalayan states, and full central funding for union territories.
For exam purposes, this is a solid one-liner: note the scheme's launch year, its funding pattern, and the state currently leading on utilisation benchmarks.