Centre Selects 435 Telangana Villages Under PM-AJAY Adarsh Gram Scheme

Telangana has secured 435 villages under the Adarsh Gram component of the Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana (PM-AJAY), a flagship Central government initiative aimed at accelerating the social and economic development of Scheduled Caste (SC) communities. Across the country, 47,328 villages have been identified under the programme, which seeks to transform SC-majority villages into model settlements through coordinated implementation of welfare schemes.

The information was shared by Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athawale in a written reply to a question raised by Rajya Sabha MP Anil Kumar Yadav. The minister said the scheme focuses on identifying developmental gaps in selected villages and addressing them through the convergence of existing Central and State government programmes rather than creating parallel initiatives.

Under the PM-AJAY Adarsh Gram component, authorities assess villages against 50 socio-economic indicators spread across 10 key sectors, including education, healthcare, sanitation, housing, drinking water, livelihoods, roads and social infrastructure. Officials first conduct a detailed needs assessment survey to establish baseline conditions before preparing village-specific development plans. Shortfalls identified during the survey are then addressed by linking beneficiaries to ongoing welfare schemes or through targeted interventions under PM-AJAY.

To ensure transparency and effective monitoring, the progress of every selected village is uploaded on the PMAGY Portal, allowing governments to track the implementation of development works and beneficiary coverage in real time. The Centre has also instructed all States and Union Territories to thoroughly verify their self-certification reports before villages are formally recognised as Adarsh Grams, strengthening accountability in the selection process.

According to the government, the programme has identified 3,28,131 development works benefiting over 1.10 crore people across India. So far, 46,642 projects have been completed, providing benefits to nearly 47.6 lakh beneficiaries, while thousands of other works are at different stages of implementation.

In Telangana, the education component of the scheme has identified 3,529 beneficiaries, of whom 472 have already received assistance. The Centre said implementation will continue across all sectors as development plans progress, with the broader objective of improving living standards, expanding access to essential services and ensuring inclusive growth in Scheduled Caste-majority villages.