Efforts on to cover farmers under crop insurance scheme

The state government is making efforts to bring farmers not covered under the crop insurance scheme under the National Agriculture Insurance Scheme (NAIS). Farmers who were taking crop loans from the nationalised banks had been covered but hundreds of farmers who are outside the crop loan cycle have not been covered under the insurance scheme so far. Special drive had been launched in this regard during the past couple of agriculture seasons. There was an overwhelming response to the campaign undertaken by the department of agriculture to insure their crops.

The main objective of the scheme is to bring the entire farming community under its ambit. Hitherto only farmers who utilised crop loans of nationalised banks were benefited under the scheme. There were hundreds of farmers who do not come under the credit plan of the government. Now the government is making efforts to popularise the scheme through its rural network and avail the insurance benefits. However for small and marginal farmers the government was paying a part of the premium.

Efforts are being made to bring all categories of farmers, small and marginal farmers apart from tenant and share-crop farmers under the insurance scheme.

A 10 percent subsidy is extended by the government on premium payment to small and marginal farmers. The in-charge Agriculture joint director Sai Lakshmeswari told

The Hindu that the objective of the NAIS is to provide a measure of financial support to the farmers in the event of crop failure as a result of drought, natural disasters and incidence of pests and diseases, for restoring the credit eligibility of farmers after a crop failure for the next season, to encourage farmers to adopt progressive practices and help stabilize farm income particularly in the event of natural disasters.