₹1,877 crore allocated for rural poverty alleviation in Budget: MSME Minister

MSME and SERP Minister Kondapalli Srinivas has said that the government has allocated ₹1,877 crore for implementation of rural poverty alleviation programmes through the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty for the financial year 2026–2027.

The allocation is ₹143 crore higher than the previous year and reflects the government’s commitment to empowering women in Self-Help Groups and strengthening rural livelihoods.

In a press release, Mr. Srinivas said ₹465 crore has been earmarked towards salaries and honorariums of SERP staff, outsourced employees and village assistants, besides maintenance of SERP and DRDA offices.

He said the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Rural Livelihoods Mission has been allocated ₹818 crore, the Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme ₹72 crore, Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana ₹30 crore and Rural Self Employment Training Institutes ₹15 crore.

Mr. Srinivas noted that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has suggested increasing the SERP budget by up to ₹1,200 crore, depending on the actual allocations received by the State under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission.

He said the government is focusing on improving the livelihoods of SHG members and creating sustainable employment opportunities, with a total proposed expenditure of ₹3,000 crore in 2026–2027.

Efforts are under way to transform about five lakh women into entrepreneurs under the One Family One Entrepreneur initiative and to strengthen Farmer Producer Organisations, he added.