Farmers can now insure their crops even before taking up sowing for the rabi season as per the modified guidelines of the Karnataka Raitha Suraksha Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima scheme.
The farmers will get 25 per cent of the sum insured if they could not sow for reasons such as deficient monsoon or if the seeds were of low quality. Only notified crops can be insured.
K.M. Somasundra, Joint Director of Agriculture, and S. Nagendra, Agriculture Officer, told The Hindu on Friday that as per the new guidelines, farmers would get 25 per cent of the sum assured if the sowing could not be taken up or there was a risk involved in it.
Mr. Nagendra said that the notified crops were paddy (irrigated), ragi (both irrigated and rain fed), horse gram (rain fed), maize, and Bengal gram. Ragi and maize are notified crops in H.D. Kote; ragi, maize, and horse gram in Hunsur; ragi in K.R. Nagar and Mysuru taluks; maize, hybrid maize and Bengal gram in Nanjangud; hybrid maize, Bengal gram and ragi in Periyapatna; and hybrid maize and ragi in T. Narsipur taluk.
Farmers need to pay the insurance premium amount of Rs.1,230 per hectare for paddy (irrigated), Rs.630 per hectare for ragi (irrigated), Rs.510 per hectare for ragi (rainfed), Rs.870 per hectare for hybrid maize (irrigated), Rs. 720 for hybrid maize (rain fed), Rs.285 per hectare for horse gram (rain fed) and Rs.188 per hectare for Bengal gram (rain fed). Mr. Somasundra said that the last date for insuring the crops under the scheme is December 31 and farmers who are planning to sow them in anticipation of rain could insure their crops by paying the insurance premium at banks or at the primary agriculture cooperative societies.
