Government Scheme Terms Explained: DBT, e-KYC, SECC, BPL and More

Forms, orders and scheme portals use the same words again and again. This glossary explains them in plain English, the way they are used in official documents.

Money and payments

DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer): The Government’s way of paying a benefit straight into the beneficiary’s bank account instead of through cash or an intermediary. Many scheme payments are made this way.
PFMS (Public Financial Management System): The payment system of the Controller General of Accounts, Ministry of Finance, through which the DBT payments of many schemes are processed and can be tracked.
Aadhaar seeding: Linking your Aadhaar number with your bank account so that Aadhaar-based payments can reach that account. Many schemes pay only into an Aadhaar-seeded account.
Instalment: One part of a benefit that is paid in several parts, for example a yearly amount paid in three instalments, or a housing grant released as construction goes on.
Subsidy: The part of a cost that the Government pays for you, such as a share of the price of a machine or a solar system, or of the interest on a loan.
In-kind benefit: A benefit given as goods or services rather than money, for example a cooking gas connection, a bicycle or free treatment.

Identity and papers

e-KYC: Electronic “know your customer”: confirming who you are with Aadhaar, by an OTP sent to the mobile number linked with Aadhaar or by fingerprint or face authentication. Some schemes hold payments until e-KYC is done.
Income certificate: A certificate issued by the State’s revenue officers stating the annual income of a person or family. Each scheme says whose income counts, for which year, and how recent the certificate must be.
Domicile or residence certificate: A certificate from the State’s revenue authorities that you are a permanent resident of the State. State schemes and State quotas usually ask for it.
Caste or community certificate: The certificate, issued by the competent revenue authority, that shows you belong to a Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe or Other Backward Class. Central schemes go by the Central lists; State schemes use the State’s lists.
EWS certificate (Income and Asset Certificate): The certificate for the Economically Weaker Sections category. For the Central list it is issued by the officers named in the Department of Personnel and Training’s order, from the District Magistrate or Collector down to a revenue officer not below the rank of Tehsildar.
UDID card: The Unique Disability ID card issued to persons with disabilities, recording the type and percentage of disability. Many disability schemes ask for it.
Self-declaration: A signed statement in which you declare a fact yourself, such as your income or that you do not draw another benefit. A false declaration can lead to the benefit being recovered.

Lists and categories

SECC 2011: The Socio Economic and Caste Census of 2011. Its data on deprived households is used to decide who is covered by schemes such as Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY.
BPL (Below Poverty Line): Families identified as poor in surveys run by State governments. BPL lists differ from State to State, and many schemes now use SECC data or ration card categories instead.
NFSA ration card (AAY and PHH): Ration cards under the National Food Security Act, 2013: Antyodaya Anna Yojana cards for the poorest households and Priority Household cards for other eligible families. Several schemes use these cards to decide who qualifies.
EWS (Economically Weaker Sections): A reservation category for people not covered by SC, ST or OBC reservation whose family income and assets are below set limits. The EWS checker on this site explains the Central rules.
Creamy layer: The better-off section of the Other Backward Classes, who are kept out of OBC reservation. The income and status limits are set by the Government.
Notified municipality: An area notified as a municipal, urban area. Some rules, such as the EWS limits on residential plots, differ for land inside and outside such areas.

Offices and portals

CSC (Common Service Centre): A centre run by a local operator under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s CSC scheme, where you can apply for many government services online. Some services are free and others carry a small fee fixed for that service.
Nodal ministry or department: The ministry or department responsible for a scheme: it issues the guidelines, releases the money and answers questions about it.
Central Sector scheme: A scheme fully funded and run by the Central Government.
Centrally Sponsored scheme: A scheme run by the States with the cost shared between the Centre and the State, so its details can differ from State to State.
Gazette notification: The formal publication of a Government order in the Gazette of India or a State Gazette. A rule takes effect as notified there.
CPGRAMS: The Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System, the online portal for complaints to Central Government ministries and departments.
Bank Mitra (business correspondent): An agent appointed by a bank to provide basic banking services in villages and small towns, including enrolment in some insurance schemes.

Insurance words

Premium: The amount you pay for insurance cover, for example once a year by auto-debit from your bank account.
Auto-debit: Your written consent for the bank to take the premium from your account each year, so that the cover renews without a new form.
Cover or sum insured: The amount the insurance pays when a claim is accepted, such as Rs. 2 lakh on death under PMJJBY.
Lien period: A waiting period after you first join, during which certain claims are not paid. Under PMJJBY, death from causes other than an accident in the first 30 days after joining is not covered.
Nominee: The person you name to receive the insurance or other amount if you die.

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