Special drive is scheduled to begin in the first week of July
Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government is set to launch a special drive to provide insurance coverage to farmers against potential crop damage. The drive is scheduled to begin in the first week of July by the agriculture department and will be flagged off by Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi.
It will cover those development blocks which have lower farm insurance coverage under the Centre’s ambitious PM Crop Insurance Scheme (PMCIS).
Sources said farmers’ participation in the crop insurance scheme needs special focus in pockets dominated by Dalits and Tribals. For this, the state government plans to rope in not only district administration but also banks and Jan Suvidha Kendras. The department also plans to disseminate information and success stories of farmers on social media.
According to UP government sources, to date, compensation of Rs.3,074.6 crore has been deposited in the accounts of 27.5 lakh farmers in UP under PMCIS. This includes payment of crop compensation of Rs.654.8 crore to over 7 lakh farmers in Kharif season 2021. In Rabi 2021-22, an area of 14.2 lakh hectares has been insured by 19.9 lakh farmers.
According to a directive issued by the additional chief secretary, agriculture, Devesh Chaturvedi, the drive would cover selected development blocks in the eight aspirational districts – Bahraich (Risia block), Shravasti (Sirsia), Balrampur (Utraula), Siddharth Nagar (Latan), Fatehpur (Bijaipur), Chitrakoot (Ramnagar) and Chandauli (Niyamtabad).
The value of damage incurred to crops in UP more than doubled between 2018-19 and 2019-20, as per Union agriculture ministry data.
Prepared on the basis of state-wise business statistics as of August 31 last year, the data shows that the reported crop loss claims shot up from around Rs.470 crore in 2018-19 to over Rs.1,116 crore in 2019-20.
As against the claimed loss, the paid claims amounted to Rs.1,092 crore in 2019-20 as against around Rs.40 crore in 2018-19. The number of farmers who benefitted from the PMCIS rose from 6 lakh in 2018-19 to over 9 lakhs in 2019-20, the data shows.
[With Inputs from IANS]
PGurus is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with all the latest news and views
For all the latest updates, download PGurus App.
- Another jolt to Congress in MP as Six-time MLA Ramniwas Rawat joins BJP - April 30, 2024
- Amit Shah’s doctored video case: Delhi Police summons 16 leaders from 7 states - April 30, 2024
- Ahead of third phase, PM Modi writes to BJP candidates; urges to spotlight Congress’ politics of ‘division and appeasement’ - April 30, 2024
