Agriculture Insurance: More than 50,000 Gujarat Farmers Buy Crop Insurance Online

New Delhi: Because of droughts, Gujarat farmers have started taking crop insurance seriously. More than 50,000 of farmers registering for the new crop insurance cover given by Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) via the state portal.

Under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) launched this year, farmers' premium has been kept at lower ranges, between 1.5%-2% for food grains and oilseed crops and up to 5% for horticultural and cotton crops. There is no cap on the premium.

A senior agriculture ministry official, said "More than 50,000 farmers have enrolled for PMFBY for the 2016-17 kharif season in Gujarat via the state portal on crop insurance."

He said that, in other states, including Uttar Pradesh, farmers are being registered by concerned agencies including banks, Primary Agricultural Credit Society (PACS), but Gujarat is the only state which is enrolling farmers under the scheme strictly through its e-portal.

He added, "The exact number of farmers registered for the scheme, both online and through other ways, would be known later. Once the banks upload the details of insured farmers on the central crop insurance scheme portal, it will be known to all stakeholders."

Karnataka government will also soon launched its state portal for PMFBY. Now 11 states have notified the PMFBY, it includes Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and West Bengal and one Union Territory, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/