NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel has pointed to falling footprints CenterExpressing concern over the U.S.’s flagship crop insurance scheme and its withdrawal or non-implementation in seven states, it said more such instances in subsequent years and “delay in settlement of claims” would defeat its original purpose.
The Standing Committee on Agriculture in its report in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday said that though most of the withdrawal states are implementing their schemes, the central government should look into the reasons/factors for the withdrawal or non-implementation. its Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
Punjab had never joined this central crop insurance scheme, which provides insurance coverage to farmers against crop loss due to natural calamities, while Bihar and West Bengal It was withdrawn in 2018 and 2019 respectively. On the other hand, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Telangana And Jharkhand did not implement this scheme last year. The states cited “financial constraints” and “low claim ratio during normal season” as the main reasons for the scheme’s non-implementation.
PMFBY was launched from 1st April 2016, after the withdrawal of previous schemes to include more risks under crop insurance cover and to make it more affordable for the farmers. In the first year it was highly appreciated by the farmers. Its coverage in 2016-17 was 30% of the Gross Crop Area (GCA) – the highest coverage in the history of crop insurance in India. But later it came down to 27% in 2018-19 and 25% in 2019-2020.
Records referenced by the panel show that the coverage in terms of the insured area under PMFBY has come down from 567.2. million hectares In 2016-17, it increased to 508.3 lakh hectares in 2017-18 and later to 497.5 lakh hectares in 2019-20. The withdrawal of states from the scheme was cited by the authorities as one of the reasons for the lack of coverage of the scheme.
The panel headed by BJP Lok Sabha member PC Gadigoudar flagged the issue of delay in claim settlement, saying farmers avail insurance under PMFBY with the hope that it will help them mitigate their losses in times of distress. Will get “But the delay in settlement of claims defeats the very purpose of the scheme.”
Although the ministry has made provision for penalty – 12% interest per annum to be paid by insurance companies to farmers for delay in settlement of claims by more than 10 days of the cut-off date fixed for payment – it has not yet resolved the issue. not done. Problem.
Under PMFBY, farmers will have to pay a uniform maximum premium of only 2% of the sum insured for all Kharif crops (summer sown) and 1.5% for all Rabi (winter) crops. In case of annual commercial and horticultural crops, the maximum premium to be paid by farmers is only 5%. The rest of the premium is borne by the government, shared equally by the states and the Centre.
The Standing Committee on Agriculture in its report in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday said that though most of the withdrawal states are implementing their schemes, the central government should look into the reasons/factors for the withdrawal or non-implementation. its Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
Punjab had never joined this central crop insurance scheme, which provides insurance coverage to farmers against crop loss due to natural calamities, while Bihar and West Bengal It was withdrawn in 2018 and 2019 respectively. On the other hand, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Telangana And Jharkhand did not implement this scheme last year. The states cited “financial constraints” and “low claim ratio during normal season” as the main reasons for the scheme’s non-implementation.
PMFBY was launched from 1st April 2016, after the withdrawal of previous schemes to include more risks under crop insurance cover and to make it more affordable for the farmers. In the first year it was highly appreciated by the farmers. Its coverage in 2016-17 was 30% of the Gross Crop Area (GCA) – the highest coverage in the history of crop insurance in India. But later it came down to 27% in 2018-19 and 25% in 2019-2020.
Records referenced by the panel show that the coverage in terms of the insured area under PMFBY has come down from 567.2. million hectares In 2016-17, it increased to 508.3 lakh hectares in 2017-18 and later to 497.5 lakh hectares in 2019-20. The withdrawal of states from the scheme was cited by the authorities as one of the reasons for the lack of coverage of the scheme.
The panel headed by BJP Lok Sabha member PC Gadigoudar flagged the issue of delay in claim settlement, saying farmers avail insurance under PMFBY with the hope that it will help them mitigate their losses in times of distress. Will get “But the delay in settlement of claims defeats the very purpose of the scheme.”
Although the ministry has made provision for penalty – 12% interest per annum to be paid by insurance companies to farmers for delay in settlement of claims by more than 10 days of the cut-off date fixed for payment – it has not yet resolved the issue. not done. Problem.
Under PMFBY, farmers will have to pay a uniform maximum premium of only 2% of the sum insured for all Kharif crops (summer sown) and 1.5% for all Rabi (winter) crops. In case of annual commercial and horticultural crops, the maximum premium to be paid by farmers is only 5%. The rest of the premium is borne by the government, shared equally by the states and the Centre.
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