Social and Infrastructure Development Fund (SIDF) was created with due approval of Cabinet. While presenting the Budget for 2007-08, the Finance Minister had announced a number of initiatives relating to social and infrastructure development which were proposed to be implemented with effect from the year 2007-08. The initiatives included Upgradation of 1396 ITIs, training of Farmers, Employment for Physically Challenged, Means cum-Merit Scholarships, Ground Water Recharge, Social Security through provision of death and disability insurance cover through LIC to rural landless households, and support to various institutes of Historical, Cultural, Economic and Agricultural significance, for improving infrastructure.

An amount of ₹ 6,500 crore in 2006-07 and ₹ 6000 crore in 2007-08 was transferred to SIDF. The details of allocation from the fund during the last three years and the current year are as follows:

(Rs. in crore)

	Actual 2012-13	Actual 2013-14	Revised 2014-15	Budget 2015-16
Amounts released from Social and Infrastructure Development Fund	77.25	323.77	70.05	170.00

This was stated by Shri Jayant Sinha, Minister of State in Ministry of Finance in written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today.

Social and Infrastructure Development Fund funding releases support targeted social and infrastructure initiatives across multiple fiscal periods. The Social and Infrastructure Development Fund was established with Cabinet approval to finance targeted social and infrastructure initiatives-including vocational institute upgradation, agricultural training, disability employment support, scholarships, groundwater recharge, rural death and disability insurance, and institutional infrastructure-and has received budgetary transfers with recorded allocations and disbursements over successive fiscal periods, as reported by the Minister of State in response to a parliamentary question.