NEW DELHI, October 14: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the continuation of the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) for five years, from 2026-27 to 2030-31, with a total outlay of ₹53,428 crore.
The programme, which covers 3.20 crore beneficiaries across 36 States and Union Territories, will be renamed Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana. The approval also provides for changes in disability pension eligibility and assistance, while existing pension schemes for senior citizens and widows, along with the family benefit scheme, will continue in their present form.
Under the revised provisions for disability pension, eligible beneficiaries aged up to 79 years will receive ₹375, while those aged 80 years and above will receive ₹625. The benchmark disability requirement has been reduced from 80 per cent to 40 per cent, and the minimum age criterion has been removed, making the scheme applicable from birth, according to the government.
The revised eligibility criteria, beneficiary coverage and assistance rates for disability pension are to be detailed in guidelines, which the government plans to issue and implement within three months.
The Cabinet has also approved new names for the programme’s component schemes. The Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme will become the Pradhan Mantri Vridhavastha Pension Yojana, while the Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme will be renamed the Pradhan Mantri Vidhawa Pension Yojana.
The Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme will be called the Pradhan Mantri Divyangjan Pension Yojana, and the National Family Benefit Scheme will be renamed the Pradhan Mantri Parivar Labh Yojana.
Launched on August 15, 1995, the NSAP provides social assistance to poor households in line with Article 41 of the Constitution, which relates to the State’s responsibility to provide public assistance in cases including old age, disability and other circumstances of need.
The government said the changes to disability pension eligibility were necessitated by the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, which links eligibility to a benchmark disability of 40 per cent. The Act also requires disability-related assistance to be at least 25 per cent higher than assistance under comparable schemes for other categories, the release stated.
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