 "MP expects Rs 609 cr crop insurance payment soon")
"The claim settlement committee will soon review the demand and is most likely to settle the claims of Rs 609 crore for Rabi season 2013-14. As many as 577,000 farmers will get the compensation who had lost mainly wheat and chana (gram) crop. The crop insurance claims for kharif 2013 has already been settled for an amount of Rs 2,187 crore and the amount has been distributed among farmers," Rajesh Rajora, principal secretary, state farmers' welfare and agriculture development department told Business Standard.
The state has also asked the centre to reimburse Rs 2,000 crore under national disaster relief fund.
"Farmers had earlier been given an amount of Rs 4,600 crore under contingency and disaster relief funds from state kitty," Rajora said.
Though state chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has a long pending demand to revise National Agriculture Insurance Scheme (NAIS), soyabean farmers in Madhya Pradesh have presented never-before claims to the tune of Rs 3,000 crore approximately.
As many as 30000 farmers were reported to have lost crop from 50% to total in almost 49 districts. However agriculture did very well in the past four years. Farm output grew 18.6 per cent in 2011-12, by 19.2 per cent in 2012-13 and 24.99 per cent in 2013-14.
State chief minister however had recently urged the prime minister Narendra Modi to continue with the National Crop Insurance Scheme which has been earlier abolished without consulting states. The central government has proposed to introduce National Crop Insurance Programme instead. "This programme will increase financial strain on farmers," said a highly placed official in the state government, "Its implementation is practically difficult." The state chief minister has urged the Prime Minister to continue the National Crop Insurance Scheme till states give the go to Union ministry of agriculture.