Farmers Coverage Under PMFBY to Increase by 30% This Kharif

Stating that farmers are taking up crop insurance in a big way after two drought years, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh today said 30% more farmers are expected to register under Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) in the ongoing kharif season. Some states, especially Karnataka and Gujarat have made good progress so far in implementing the scheme, but there was a delay in rolling out the scheme in Tamil Nadu and Kerala due to elections but the work now has been fastened, he said. He, however, blamed the Bihar government for playing "politics in the name of farmers" and stopping mid-way through the implementation of the crop insurance scheme, especially after collecting the premium from farmers for this kharif season.

"Except for Bihar, there has been a good progress in implementation of PMFBY across the country. Last year, 3.07 crore had taken up crop insurance under earlier schemes. In this kharif season, we are expecting 4 crore farmers to enroll under the scheme," Singh told reporters here. As many as 22 states, barring Bihar and Punjab, have introduced the new crop insurance scheme. The remaining states are in the process of implementing the scheme. This being the first year of the implementation of PMFBY, there has been some delay in notifying the scheme in some states. So, the deadline for submitting the proposal has been extended till August 10 from July 31, he said. Singh was speaking to reporters from 11 states including Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Tamil Nadu via video conference. Stating that there has been good response from farmers to the PMFBY across the country, the minister said, "The coverage in some states is increasing. The exact data of coverage would be known after August 10."

However as per the latest available data, as many as 10.12 lakh farmers have taken up crop insurance for the Kharif 2016 crop in Karnataka under the PMFBY, which is higher than 8.72 lakh farmers in the year-ago period, he said. "Farmers in Karnataka and some other states had faced severe drought last year and hence there has been good response to crop insurance this year,"he said, while denying any special relief package to the state or any reduction in the premium rate of the crop insurance. Under PMFBY, farmers premium has been kept lower between 1.5-2% for foodgrains and oilseed crops and up to 5% for horticultural and cotton crops. There is no cap on the premium, he said. In Gujarat, 13.5 lakh farmers have registered under the crop insurance scheme for the 2016 kharif season, which is a sharp jump from 5 lakh farmers in the year-ago period. Similarly, the number of coverage has risen in Jharkhand.

On status of the crop insurance scheme in Bihar, the minister said the state has reservation in implementing the scheme despite been approved by the state cabinet and even collecting premium from farmers. The Bihar government is asking for change in the name of the scheme and demanding the centre to bear the entire expenditure, thereby "playing politics in the name of farmers", he said.