Prime Minister Narendra Modi who on Wednesday interacted with the beneficiaries of his government’s ambitious ‘Svamitva Yojna, which aims to give people access to bank loans against their property, said a similar scheme was on the cards at the national level.

“SVAMITVA Yojna, a scheme for the establishment of property ownership, to be implemented at the national level,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while interacting with the beneficiaries of the scheme in Madhya Pradesh via video conferencing.

“In the initial stage, PM Svamitva scheme was launched in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and Karnataka in some villages. In these states, property cards have been made for 22 lakh families,” the Prime Minister further said.

Highlighting the importance of the ownership or Svamitva scheme, Modi said it was going to benefit a large section of the population. He said people can apply for bank loans against their property. This would in turn ensure improvement in the living standard of people.

The Prime Minister who distributed e-property cards to 1,71,000 beneficiaries under the SVAMITVA scheme on the occasion also indicated about their pivotal role in rural development. “We have done everything in our power to make small farmers self-reliable,” Modi said, seeking to drive home the point.

Appreciating the Madhya Pradesh government’s efforts at expeditious implementation of the scheme, the Prime Minister said, “The state of Madhya Pradesh has worked on this scheme at a fast pace and deserves appreciation for it. Today, over 1.70 lakh families of 3000 villages received the property card ‘Adhikar Abhilekh’ that will bring prosperity.”

Some of the beneficiaries who spoke to the Prime Minister expressed their happiness over the ‘Swavitva’ scheme. In a lighter vein, Modi also sought to elicit their experience on the use of drones for surveying their areas. The beneficiaries likened the drone to a helicopter.

About the use of drone technology for surveying lands in rural areas, a government note earlier said it would give a boost to the drone manufacturing ecosystem in the country.