"Merging fragmented welfare schemes improves efficiency but may dilute focus." Examine this with reference to PM-AJAY.

PM-AJAY started in 2021-22. It merged three schemes into one Centrally Sponsored Scheme: PMAGY, SCA to SCSP and BJRCY [2]. The Centre pays 100% of its cost [1]. Its record supports both halves of the statement: administration has become simpler, but some goals have lost their protected funding.

Efficiency gains from merger

• One framework: States now deal with one set of rules and one funding stream instead of three. The scheme has three parts: Adarsh Gram, Grants-in-Aid (GIA) and Hostels [2].
• Digital monitoring: A single scheme made the PM-AJAY Portal and AJAY App possible. The app runs field surveys in 24 languages and requires geo-tagged, time-stamped photos of assets [3].
• Integrated planning: 47,243 villages are covered and 27,032 Village Development Plans have been prepared. More than ₹1,730 crore of GIA has been released for livelihood projects [1].
• Convergence: In villages where at least 40% of people are SC, gap-filling combines infrastructure and livelihood work [1].

Dilution of focus

• Budget squeeze: The 2021-22 allocation was ₹1,800 crore. This was ₹160 crore less than the three schemes had together in 2020-21 [4].
• Crowding out: Adarsh Gram gap-filling can take up to 50% of the funds [1]. Hostels lost their own budget line, and the Standing Committee asked for a separate BJRCY allocation [4].
• Buildings, not use: Only 366 of 662 completed BJRCY hostels were functional [4]. Photo checks prove a building exists, not that students live in it.
• Slow saturation: Only 18,093 of the 47,243 covered villages (about 38%) have been declared Adarsh Gram [1].
• Diffuse targeting: Because the village threshold is 40% SC population, shared infrastructure also serves non-SC households [1].

Way forward

• Set a ring-fenced share for each component, with separate amounts for boys' and girls' hostels [4].
• Create hostel management committees and make the app report occupancy, not just photos [4].
• Link PM-AJAY to DAPSC, under which ministries must earmark funds for SCs [5]. Give SC spending legal backing on the lines of Karnataka's 2013 SC Sub-Plan Act [6].

Overall, the merger has made PM-AJAY simpler to plan and monitor. However, a shared budget and output-based targets have weakened focus on specific goals such as hostels. Keeping the merger while protecting each component's share and measuring real outcomes would make PM-AJAY a stronger tool for Article 46 and SDG 10 (reduced inequalities).