MADURAI
Crop insurance compensation to the tune of ₹1.03 crore has been sanctioned under Prime Minister Fasal Bima Yojana for 1,890 farmers in the district for the kharif season of 2019.
An Agriculture Department official said crop insurance of ₹13.42 lakh had been sanctioned for cotton, ₹2.47 lakh for groundnut, ₹87.29 lakh for maize, ₹33,000 for paddy and ₹860 for gingelly. He said the compensation had been sanctioned based on assessment of yield loss for each crop in the notified insurance units due to natural calamities.
Though crop insurance for 2019-2020 had been sanctioned, farmers were still awaiting disbursal of crop insurance for maize for 2018-2019. “It was during 2018-2019 the Fall Armyworm attack destroyed the crop and reduced the yield in the district. While 16,362 maize farmers had paid the insurance premium, only 3,292 of them had received the compensation. We are working to ensure that all get compensation,” said the official.
To emphasise the importance of crop insurance, the department was conducting various awareness programmes across the district. Till now, 32 farmers had insured 59 acres of paddy, maize and jowar for kharif 2020, the official added.
