RS. 4000 CRORE CROP INSURANCE PAID TO FARMERS
GOVERNMENT FOR
DOING MORE
The Union Government will
soon announce revised norms for the National Agricultural Insurance
Scheme (NAIS) to further increase the coverage of farmers under
the scheme, which has reached 106 lakh in 2001-02. Under NAIS
launched during the Rabi season of 1999-2000 an amount of Rs.661.23
crore has been paid to 77.26 lakh farmers during the first five
crop seasons. Since the launch of the scheme 269 lakh farmers
have insured a total crop value of Rs.17,867.12 crore against
total Insurance charges of Rs.531.71 crore. The total claims by
the farmers amounted to Rs.1823.02 crore. The cropped area covered
has been 331.45 lakh hectares.
The National Agriculture
Insurance Scheme has proved to be a significant improvement over
its predecessor, the Comprehensive Crop Insurance Scheme (CCIS),
which was implemented from 1985 to 1999. During the fifteen years
of implementation of CCIS, 761 lakh farmers have insured a total
sum of Rs.24,922 crore against insurance charges of Rs.402.83
crore. Against total claims made by the farmers of Rs.2305.05
crore, an amount of Rs.2297.22 crore has been paid to the farmers.
The total crop area covered under CCIS was 1275 lakh hectares.
Under the CCIS, drought related claims accounted for about 75%
of the total claims followed by floods with about 20%.
NAIS has become more popular
with the farmers than CCIS following enlargement of scope of coverage
by extending it to non-loanee farmers, annual commercial and horticultural
crops. It also provided for greater coverage of risk up to the
value of threshold yield. Farmers also have the choice for the
coverage of more risk in terms of sum insured by paying higher
premium rates. Under CCIS and its successor NAIS, Rs.3958.45 Crore
has been paid to farmers till the end of Rabi season of 2001-02.
Under NAIS food crops
and oil seeds and annual commercial and horticultural crops like
cotton, sugar cane, potato, onion, chillies, turmeric, ginger,
tapioca, annual banana and pineapple are covered for all natural
non preventable risks leading to yield losses. Loanee farmers
are covered on compulsory basis while the scheme is optional for
non-loanee farmers. Small and marginal farmers are eligible for
50% subsidy on premium. The premium rates range from 1.5% to 3.5%
for food crops and oil seeds and on commercial basis for commercial
and horticultural crops. General Insurance Company is presently
the implementing agency for NAIS. Central and State governments
share the premium subsidy equally.
The central government has
earmarked Rs.1500 crore for crop insurance during the 10th
Five Year Plan period. The expenditure in this regard during 9th
Five Year Plan was Rs.1031.49 crore against the initial allocation
of Rs.730 crore. NAIS, a voluntary scheme, is presently being
implemented by 23 states and union territories. Non-implementing
states/union territories include Delhi, Haryana, Chandigarh, Punjab,
Rajasthan, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Dadra
& Nagar Haveli, Daman & Diu and Lakswadeep. The reasons
for non-implementation include non-availability of requisite past
yield data, sharing of financial liabilities and the states demanding
the right to distribute the insurance payments among the affected
farmers.
Based on the views expressed
by some states and recommendations of the Conference of State
Agriculture Ministers and Standing Committee of Union Ministers
and Chief Ministers on Food Management and Agricultural Exports,
the Union Agricultural Ministry is reviewing NAIS for expanding
its scope. The review covers rationalisation of premium rates,
limiting the sum insured, state wise maintenance of corpus fund,
assessment of yield rates through Small Area Crop Estimation Method,
coverage of perennial crops etc.
During the two years of implementation
of NAIS, 27.13 lakh farmers have been paid insurance in Gujarat
while it has been 17.54 lakh farmers in Maharashtra, 11.46 lakh
in Madhya Pradesh, 4.55 lakh in Andhra Pradesh, 4.11 lakh in Karnataka,
4.04 lakh in Orissa, 4.02 lakh in Chhatisgarh, 2.82 lakh in Uttar
Pradesh, 0.73 lakh in West Bengal, 0.72 lakh in Tamil Nadu, 0.30
lakh in Bihar, 0.15 lakh in Kerala, 866 farmers in Himachal Pradesh,
696 in Goa, 590 in Assam and 499 in Meghalaya.
