In the run-up to the monsoon and the new agricultural season, the authorities in the district are bracing up to expand crop insurance cover in the district.

At present, less than 15 per cent of the nearly 3.7 lakh agricultural loanees in the district have crop insurance cover and hence the focus on widening the insurance net.

District Lead Bank Manager K.N. Shivalingaiah said that a high-level meeting, chaired by the Deputy Commissioner and involving all senior level officials from different fields, including banks, Departments of Agriculture, Horticulture etc., will be convened in due course to finalise the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY)

Lack of insurance cover is one of the reasons for the spate of farmer suicides in case of a crop loss and even among those insured, the terms and conditions are stringent. Hence not many opt for the insurance scheme though it is compulsory for farmers availing loans from commercial banks, to have insurance cover.

But there is a catch here. As Kurubur Shanthakumar, President, Karnataka Sugarcane Cultivators Association explained: insurance cover is extended only to those cultivating the notified crops and this varied from region to region.

Mr. Shivalingaiah conceded that insurance cover is only for the notified crops for the region but there are proposals to bring in more crops under the ambit of notified crops. “This will ensure that more farmers are covered under the insurance scheme,” he added.

Besides notified crop, the notified area or the unit area of insurance is also being redefined. Earlier, the unit area was a hobli but it is has been further reduced to gram panchayat level under the PMFBY, said Mr. Shivalingaiah.

But Mr. Shanthakumar said that farmers want the unit of insurance to be further localised.

There are further relaxation in norms for declaring crop failure in the unit area and earlier it was mandatory that at least 50 per cent of the crops had failed in the unit. “But is has now been reduced to 33 per cent to avail insurance cover,” according to Mr. Shivalingaiah.

Source - thehindu.com