The Government of India has selected 47,328 villages under the Adarsh Gram component of PM-AJAY (Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana), including 435 villages in Telangana. PM-AJAY consolidates three earlier SC welfare schemes — PMAGY, SEAP, and PMKPY — into a single umbrella programme. It targets socio-economic upliftment of Scheduled Caste communities through infrastructure development, income generation, and village-level convergence of government services in SC-majority habitations.

PM-AJAY (Pradhan Mantri Anusuchit Jaati Abhyuday Yojana) is a centrally sponsored scheme under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. It was formed by merging three pre-existing SC-focused schemes: Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana (PMAGY), Special Central Assistance to Scheduled Castes Sub Plan (SEAP), and Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram (PMKPY — originally for minority-concentrated areas, the SC-focused analogue being the merged component). The scheme has three components: (1) Adarsh Gram — integrated development of SC-majority villages with at least 50% SC population, (2) District/State-level projects for income-generating schemes for SC individuals below poverty line, and (3) Construction of Ambedkar Dham and related social infrastructure.

The Adarsh Gram component targets villages with 50% or more SC population and seeks to bridge the development gap between SC-majority villages and the national average on key indicators — health, education, sanitation, roads, and livelihood. The convergence model ensures that central and state scheme funds are directed at these selected villages in a coordinated manner rather than dispersed. The 47,328 village selection is significant because it represents the scaled-up national coverage of this programme, and Telangana's 435-village share reflects the state's SC-majority habitation density. For NABARD aspirants, the rural credit and livelihood support angle within the district project component is directly relevant to priority sector and rural development financing.