UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana

Q1. With reference to Article 41 of the Constitution of India, which underpins the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The State's obligation to provide public assistance under this Article operates only within the limits of its economic capacity and development.
  2. This Article covers public assistance in cases of old age, sickness and disablement, while unemployment falls outside it and is addressed solely by Article 43.
  3. Although this Article cannot be enforced by any court, the State has a constitutional duty to apply its principle in making laws.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q2. The disability pension under the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana has been realigned from the 'severe disability' standard of the National Trust Act, 1999 to the 'benchmark disability' standard of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, and its minimum-age condition has been removed. With reference to persons from below-poverty-line households, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. A person certified with 85% disability who received the pension under the earlier standard ceases to be eligible, because the new standard is drawn from a different statute.
  2. A person certified with 50% disability, who was ineligible under the earlier standard, now qualifies for the pension.
  3. A ten-year-old child certified with benchmark disability, who was ineligible earlier, now qualifies for the pension.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 and 2 only
  • C. 1 and 3 only
  • D. 2 and 3 only

Q3. Following the 2026 revision of the disability pension under the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana: the below-poverty-line eligibility condition has been retained; eligibility is now aligned to the 40% benchmark disability standard and has no minimum age; the number of beneficiaries is expected to rise from about 8.33 lakh to about 27.48 lakh; and the scheme continues with 100% central assistance. Which of the following inferences can validly be drawn from the above?

  1. Every person certified with benchmark disability in India will now be entitled to the pension.
  2. The rise in beneficiaries flows from relaxed disability and age criteria rather than from any loosening of the poverty test.
  3. Since the Centre funds the scheme fully, a disability pensioner will receive the same monthly amount in every State.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q4. Consider the following assertion: Aligning the national disability pension with the standard of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 is consistent with India's obligations under the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). Which of the statements given above support/supports the assertion?

  1. The pension is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme that carries 100% central assistance to the States and Union Territories.
  2. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 was enacted to give effect to India's commitments under the UNCRPD.
  3. The UNCRPD recognises the right of persons with disabilities to social protection without disability-based discrimination, including access to poverty reduction programmes.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 3 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1, 2 and 3

Q5. With reference to the restructuring of Centrally Sponsored Schemes that the Union Cabinet accepted following the report of the Sub-Group of Chief Ministers constituted under NITI Aayog in 2015, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Schemes for social protection and social inclusion were designated 'core of the core' and made the first charge on available funds.
  2. 'Core of the core' schemes were shifted to the 60:40 Centre-State sharing pattern that applies to other core schemes in general category States.
  3. For optional schemes, States were left free to choose which ones to implement, and the central share in them is lower than in core schemes.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 and 3 only
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 2 and 3 only

Q6. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. Under the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana, States are required to bear 40% of the cost of the central pension assistance, in line with the usual Centrally Sponsored Scheme pattern.
  2. The Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana is designed to set a national minimum standard of social assistance that States may supplement from their own resources.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q7. With reference to Article 41 of the Constitution of India, which a central social-assistance programme for BPL households claims to give effect to, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. It directs the State to make effective provision for public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement, within the limits of its economic capacity and development.
  2. A BPL elderly person refused a pension under such a programme can move the Supreme Court under Article 32 to have Article 41 itself enforced.
  3. Even though courts cannot enforce it, the Constitution makes it the duty of the State to apply this principle in making laws.
  • A. 1, 2 and 3
  • B. 1 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 and 3 only

Q8. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. A BPL senior citizen cannot get a court order compelling the Union to raise the central old-age pension rate merely by relying on Article 41 of the Constitution.
  2. The Constitution declares that the provisions of Part IV shall not be enforceable by any court.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q9. The central disability pension has been revised. The eligibility threshold has moved from the 'severe disability' standard of the National Trust Act, 1999 to the 'benchmark disability' standard of the RPwD Act, 2016, the minimum age requirement has been removed, and the central rates have been raised. Assume each person below belongs to a BPL household and holds a valid disability certificate. Consider the following persons: Which of the persons given above become newly eligible or receive higher central assistance as a result of this revision?

  1. A 10-year-old child with 85% disability
  2. A 30-year-old adult with 60% disability
  3. A 25-year-old adult with 30% disability
  4. A 70-year-old person with 90% disability who was already receiving the disability pension
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 2 and 4 only
  • C. 1, 2 and 4 only
  • D. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Q10. With reference to the funding and delivery design of the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. The central assistance is shared between the Centre and the States in a 60:40 ratio, and 90:10 for North-Eastern and Himalayan States.
  2. Even though the central assistance is fully centrally funded, State/UT government departments carry out the scheme on the ground.
  3. Because the Centre bears the entire national minimum, States are not permitted to pay beneficiaries more than the central rate.
  • A. 1 and 3 only
  • B. 2 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 only

Q11. Consider the following statements: Which of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

  1. The Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana is classified as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme even though the Centre provides 100% of the central assistance under it.
  2. States and Union Territories may add top-up amounts from their own resources to the central pension.
  • A. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
  • B. Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
  • C. Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
  • D. Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Q12. Consider the following statements comparing the Pradhan Mantri Samajik Sahayata Yojana (PMSSY) and the Atal Pension Yojana (APY): Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. A PMSSY pensioner need not have paid anything into the scheme, whereas an APY pension depends on the subscriber's own contributions.
  2. Both schemes restrict eligibility to households identified as below the poverty line.
  3. The family benefit component of PMSSY is a recurring monthly pension paid to the surviving spouse.
  4. Under APY, the subscriber is promised a guaranteed minimum monthly pension, the amount depending on age at entry and level of contribution.
  • A. 1 and 4 only
  • B. 3 and 4 only
  • C. 2 and 3 only
  • D. 1 and 2 only

Q13. From 2026-27, central funds for the national social-assistance programme are released through the SNA-SPARSH mechanism, and beneficiaries are paid mainly by Direct Benefit Transfer. Consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. Under this mechanism, the central share is meant to be released just-in-time, when a payment actually falls due, instead of being transferred in advance and kept in State-level accounts.
  2. Moving to a new fund-release mechanism can temporarily delay payments to beneficiaries even when the budget allocation for the scheme has not been reduced.
  3. A change in the fund-release mechanism does not by itself alter the scheme's eligibility conditions or its central rates of assistance.
  • A. 2 and 3 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 3
  • C. 1 and 2 only
  • D. 1 only