Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana - (PMGSY)

Pradhan Mantri Gramin Sadak Yojana is a Central government scheme. The primary objective of the PMGSY is to provide Connectivity, by way of an All-weather Road (with necessary culverts and cross-drainage structures, which is operable throughout the year), to the not connected Habitations so far in the rural areas, in such a way that Habitations with a population of 1000 persons and above are covered in three years (2000-2003) and all Unconnected Habitations with a population of 500 persons and above by the end of the Tenth Plan Period(2007). In respect of the Hill States(North-East, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttaranchal) and the Desert Areas (as identified in the Desert Development Programme) as well as the Tribal (Schedule V) areas, the objective would be to connect Habitations with a population of 250 persons and above.

Earlier it was a 100% centrally-sponsored scheme, but now from 2015-16 the funding is shared between the Centre and the State in the ratio of 60:40. The scheme provides all-weather rural road connectivity to all habitations with a population of 250 and above in 11 left-wing extremism-affected districts, known as ‘Integrated Action Plan (IAP) districts and to the habitations with a populations of 500 and above in the remaining 27‘Non-IAP’ districts of Bihar. However, PMGSY continues to have its own limitations and does not have any provision for providing connectivity to habitations with populations 250-499 in the Non-IAP districts. This discrimination in the outreach between the IAP and Non-IAP districts led to very strong popular resentment and dissatisfaction effort towards the rural roads development.