Barmer farmers set to get crop insurance of Rs 1,000 cr: Official

The Union agriculture ministry has issued the final order in providing crop insurance worth Rs 1,000 crore to about four lakh farmers in the Barmer region, after uncertainty for 10 months, a government official here said.

After the failure of monsoon in 2018 that damaged crop in 1,266,418 hectares, the administration submitted a claim for Rs1,034.36 crore -- Rs 646 crore for bajra (pearl millets), Rs 199.27 crore for moth beans and moong dal, Rs 181.50 crore for guar (cluster beans) and Rs 7.59 crore for groundnut.

The insurance company had, however, offered to pay only 25% of the total claim. An official of the agriculture department said that company offered Rs 258.59 crore against the claimed amount of Rs 1,034.36 crore -- Rs 120.20 crore less than the premium paid, Rs 378.79 crore.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the PM Crop Insurance Scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, in 2015. As per the scheme , a farmer has to pay only 2 percent of total premium, while the state and central government bear the rest of the amount equally.

Local authorities refused to accept company’s pared down offer and demanded a full compensation, after which in January this year the firm approached the Union agriculture ministry, claiming that no crops were sown in Barmer district before the cut-off date of August 15, which entitles it to offer only 25% of the insurance claim.

Based on the crop assessment report submitted by a central team, the state government has declared drought in 2,741 of total 2,775 villages in Barmer. As per the report, due to erratic monsoon, crop has been damaged across 1,266,418 hectares, out of total cultivated area 1,518,190 hectares of land.

Barring the financial year 2010-11, Barmer has been facing severe drought over the last 10 years.

In the crop assessment report, 100% crop damage has been reported in 2,191 villages and 75% in 503 villages.

“After we refused to accept the 25 percent claim as offered by Insurance company, it had approached the agricultural ministry. Now ministry has refused the company’s argument and the technical advisory committee of agricultural ministry has issued the final order and soon compensation will be disbursed to the farmers, said Kishorilal Verma, deputy director in the agricultural (Extention) department in Barmer.”