**Executive Summary**
This document presents the response of the Minister of State in the Ministry of Rural Development to Unstarred Question No. 1801 in Lok Sabha, answered on February 10, 2026. It addresses the number of beneficiaries under the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP), including the National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS). The document provides state/UT-wise caps on beneficiaries and information regarding NFBS implementation.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS)**
* Provides a lump-sum assistance of Rs. 20,000 to bereaved BPL households in the event of death of the primary breadwinner (aged 18-60 years).
* Operates on a demand-driven basis.
* Fund release to States/UTs is contingent on receipt of proposals aligned with scheme guidelines and Ministry of Finance instructions.
* **National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP)**
* Caters to 3.09 crore BPL beneficiaries, with scheme-wise caps for each State/UT.
* Pension schemes under NSAP have achieved almost 100% saturation, but States/UTs can provide additional assistance from their own resources.
* Approximately 5.87 crore additional pensioners are supported by State-funded schemes.
* **Implementation & Responsibility**
* Implementation of NSAP, beneficiary identification/verification, pension disbursal, pension stoppage, and annual verification are the responsibility of States/UTs.
* **NSAP-PPS Portal**
* A web-based pension payment portal (NSAP-PPS) is operational for managing and monitoring pension benefits to eligible beneficiaries.
* The portal facilitates beneficiary record maintenance, pension sanction processing, and fund disbursement tracking.
* **State/UT-wise Beneficiary Caps**
* An annexure contains State/UT-wise caps on the number of beneficiaries under pension schemes of NSAP (excluding NFBS).
* Another annexure lists the State/UT-wise cap/ceiling of number of beneficiaries under the National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS)
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholders**
* Central Government (Ministry of Rural Development)
**Impact**
* Responsible for overall policy and guidelines of NSAP and NFBS.
* Monitors fund allocation and scheme implementation through reports and the NSAP-PPS portal.
* Addresses parliamentary questions regarding beneficiary coverage and scheme performance.
**Action Required**
* Ensure timely fund release based on proposals from States/UTs, in accordance with scheme guidelines and MoF instructions.
* Maintain and monitor the NSAP-PPS portal for efficient pension delivery.
* State Governments/Union Territories
**Impact**
* Responsible for the implementation of NSAP and NFBS at the state/UT level.
* Conduct beneficiary identification, verification, and annual verification processes.
* Responsible for disbursing pensions and stopping pensions.
**Action Required**
* Submit proposals for fund release to the Central Government.
* Ensure proper implementation of NSAP and NFBS schemes.
* Ensure the correct implementation of the NSAP schemes and all guidelines are followed.
* Identify, verify, and maintain accurate beneficiary databases.
* Beneficiaries (Eligible BPL Households and Pensioners)
**Impact**
* Receive financial assistance through NFBS in the event of the death of the primary breadwinner.
* Receive pension benefits under NSAP, subject to State/UT-wise caps and eligibility criteria.
**Action Required**
* Adhere to eligibility criteria for NFBS and NSAP benefits.
* Undergo verification processes as required by the State/UT.
Key Entities Referenced
National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP): A social welfare program providing financial assistance to the elderly, widows, persons with disabilities, and bereaved families in India. Includes the National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS).
National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS): A component of NSAP, providing a lump-sum assistance to bereaved households below the poverty line in the event of the death of the primary breadwinner.
States/UTs: Indian States and Union Territories; the policy's applicability and implementation vary by State/UT.
Ministry of Rural Development: The central ministry responsible for implementing the NSAP and NFBS.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
DEPARTMENT OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1801
ANSWERED ON 10/02/2026
BENEFICIARIES UNDER NSAP AND NFBS
1801. Shri Rao Rajendra Singh:
Will the Minister of RURAL DEVELOPMENTbe pleased to state:
(a) the number of eligible beneficiaries identified under National
Social Assistance Programme(NSAP) including the National
Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS) and the number of
beneficiariesactually covered during the last three years, State
and UT-wise;
(b) the names of such States/UTs where NFBS was not
implemented or partially implementedduring the last three
years, along with the reasons therefor, State-wise; and
(c) the corrective steps taken or proposed by the Government to
ensure universal coverage ofeligible beneficiaries, proactive
identification, database maintenance and full implementation
ofNAP across all States and Union Territories?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
(SHRI KAMLESH PASWAN)
(a): State/UT-wise cap on the number of beneficiaries under the
pension schemes of National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP)
and under the National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS) are given at
Annexure.
(b): Under National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS) of National
Social Assistance Programme (NSAP), a lump-sum assistance of
Rs.20,000 is given to the bereaved household of Below Poverty Line
(BPL) in the event of death of the primary bread-winner aged more
than 18 years and less than 60 years. It is a demand-based scheme.
Release of funds is contingent upon receipt of proposals from the
concerned State/UT, submitted in accordance with the scheme
guidelines and Ministry of Finance (MoF) instructions. Funds under
the scheme are released to States/UTs on the basis of number of
Page 1 of 4eligible beneficiaries whose database has been digitized on NSAP-
PPS (National Social Assistance Programme - Pension Payment
System) portal or State cap of number of beneficiaries, whichever is
less. As the scheme is demand-driven, funds are released to States
on receipt of proposal as per the guidelines.
(c): NSAP caters to 3.09 crore BPL beneficiaries with a scheme-
wise ceiling/ cap for each State/UT on the number of beneficiaries.
At present, the pension schemes under NSAP have achieved almost
100% saturation. However, States/ UTs may give assistance from
their own resources if there are more deserving beneficiaries. As
per the information collected from States/UTs, about 5.87 crore
additional pensioners are supported by State-funded social pension
schemes.
As per NSAP guidelines, responsibility of implementation of
NSAP schemes, identification/verification of beneficiaries, disbursal
of pension to beneficiaries, stoppage of pension, annual verification
of beneficiaries lies in the hand of States/UTs.
A web-based pension payment portal, NSAP-PPS (National
Social Assistance Programme-Pension Payment System) has been
operationalized which is used for managing and monitoring pension
benefits provided to eligible beneficiaries. The portal facilitates the
maintenance of beneficiary records, processing of pension
sanctions, tracking of fund disbursement to ensure transparency
and efficiency in pension delivery.
*****
Page 2 of 4Annexure
Annexure referred to in part (a) ofLokSabhaUnstarred Question No. 1801
to be answered on 10.02.2026 regarding Beneficiaries under NSAP and
NFBS.
State/UT-wise cap of number of beneficiaries under pension schemes of
NSAP (excluding NFBS)
S.No. States/UTs
Cap/ceiling of no. of beneficiaries
1 Andhra Pradesh 934980
2 Bihar 3919447
3 Chhattisgarh 880142
4 Goa 13660
5 Gujarat 916953
6 Haryana 347256
7 Himachal Pradesh 116005
8 Jharkhand 1277520
9 Karnataka 1396274
10 Kerala 846456
11 Madhya Pradesh 2223469
12 Maharashtra 1212967
13 Odisha 2033959
14 Punjab 138231
15 Rajasthan 1169533
16 Tamil Nadu 1920858
17 Telangana 681613
18 Uttar Pradesh 5833622
19 Uttarakhand 231335
20 West Bengal 2067272
NE States
21 Arunachal Pradesh 6293
22 Assam 850531
23 Manipur 63971
24 Meghalaya 65316
25 Mizoram 27524
26 Nagaland 50779
27 Sikkim 18854
28 Tripura 154900
Union Territories
29 A&N Islands 590
30 Chandigarh 4964
31 D&N Haveli and D&D 11173
32 NCT Delhi 154820
33 J&K 140394
34 Ladakh 7148
35 Lakshadweep 293
36 Puducherry 28805
TOTAL 29747907
Page 3 of 4State/UT-wise cap/ceiling of number of beneficiaries under the National
Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS)
Sl. No. States/UTs Cap/ceiling of no. of beneficiaries
1 Andhra Pradesh 10906
2 Bihar 35859
3 Chhattisgarh 12801
4 Goa 225
5 Gujarat 10695
6 Haryana 4154
7 Himachal Pradesh 684
8 Jharkhand 14148
9 Karnataka 18312
10 Kerala 4358
11 Madhya Pradesh 30826
12 Maharashtra 34987
13 Odisha 24697
14 Punjab 2673
15 Rajasthan 12347
16 Tamilnadu 18445
17 Telangana 7794
18 Uttar Pradesh 73075
19 Uttarakhand 4808
20 West Bengal 21553
21 Arunachal Pradesh 346
22 Assam 8524
23 Manipur 669
24 Meghalaya 781
29 Mizoram 197
26 Nagaland 535
27 Sikkim 175
28 Tripura 984
29 A&N Islands 86
30 Chandigarh 80
31 D&N Haveli and D&D 119
32 NCT Delhi 2270
33 J & K 323
34 Ladakh 112
35 Lakshadweep 9
36 Puducherry 283
TOTAL 358840
*****
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