New agri insurance scheme in current fiscal: Govt

Agriculture Minister says revised guidelines in this regard by previous govt will not be implemented

The government said it would bring new guidelines for the proposed agri insurance scheme and clarified that revised guidelines in this regard by the previous government would not be implemented

A new agriculture insurance scheme will be brought in the current financial year, government told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, while asking states to work in tendem with the Centre to address the problems in the policies and their implementation.

Replying to a debate on the ‘Prevailing Agrarian Crisis in the Country’, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh said the government would bring new guidelines for the proposed agri insurance scheme and clarified that revised guidelines in this regard by the previous government would not be implemented.

“There have been problems in government policies...and their implementation,” he said but did not spell out these problems.

Holding these problems responsible for the crisis in the agriculture sector, Singh said, “The states and the Centre should unitedly work to remove anomalies in the existing policies after discussions to help for their proper implementation... My attempt is to sit with officials of the Centre and the states to formulate policies by January.” Replying to members over concerns on farmer suicides, he said according to figures by National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) for 2013, as many as 134,000 people had committed suicide across the country of which 11,772 were from farming background, which is only about 9 per cent of the total.

He lamented that despite major parts of the country facing "drought-like" situation, none of the states came forward to declare it, but said the Centre would step in to offer help.

The Minister stated that the government had earmarked a sum of Rs 8 lakh crore for farm loans during the current year and earmarked another Rs 1,000 crore for providing irrigation to every village. He noted that 60 per cent of the country's land was still without irrigation facilities.

Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi for being a farmer's man who will take care of their interests, he said, "a businessman is not sitting at the highest chair of the country".

Singh announced that government would be introducing a scheme for delivering seeds at the doorsteps of farmers, for which it was tying up with the postal department. The Minister also called for strengthening of 'Krishi Vigyan Kendras' as he sought help of 20,000 farm scientists across the country. He said he would be writing to states in this regard.

He urged farm scientists to adopt villages for rescue of farmers from agrarian crisis and hoped the scheme for MPs to adopt each village would also help in this direction.

"Our Prime Minister is aware of the plight of farmers and understands them. Till the villages are improved, the country cannot progress...Till the time we bring the urban amenities to villages, we will not rest in peace," he said.

Highlighting the achievements of NDA government, he said, cotton procurement centres were opened to procure cotton under MSP and the government was ready to establish more such centres.

He also said that government was conducting field trials of soil for which 56 crore was earmarked as well as 100 mobile laboratories.

Singh assured the members that his government will leave no stone unturned to improve the agriculture sector and plight of farmers.