The farmers wing of the Tamil Maanila Congress has petitioned the Inspector General of Police, Central Zone, seeking action against agricultural insurance firms for the delay in disbursement of claims for the year 2016-17.
In a petition submitted at the IG’s office on Saturday, Puliyur A. Nagarajan, president of the farmers wing of the party, said over nine lakh farmers had insured their samba paddy crop under the Prime Minister’s Crop Insurance Scheme during 2016-17.
But due to the unprecedented drought, the crop had withered. The Agriculture Department has given a report on the extent of the damage to the insurance companies. Although the State government has said six lakh farmers are eligible to get compensation under the crop insurance cover, farmers have not got the amount despite repeated representations, Mr. Nagarajan said and pointed out that farmers have started cultivation for the samba season and have started paying premium for the current year. The police, he said, should conduct enquiries with the insurance companies and help farmers get the compensation due to them.
