Govt likely to set aside Rs 30,000 crore for PM Fasal Bima Yojna expansion

The government is considering putting aside Rs 30,000 crore to expand the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) portal, a Mint report said. The government plans to convert it into a comprehensive platform that covers insurance coverage beyond crops to include assets such as ponds, tractors, livestock, and palm trees, officials familiar with the subject told Mint.

This program will be driven by the Ace Integrated Development Environment (AIDE) application, which was launched in July to ensure door-to-door enrolment, with the intent of making crop insurance more accessible and convenient for farmers. The app will facilitate insurance intermediaries to enrol farmers for crop insurance in addition to extending the coverage to 40 million farmers for non-subsidised schemes, the Mint report added.

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Two officials familiar with the development told Mint, "We are planning to build a platform. It's a transition from being a portal to a platform. AIDE app is already operational to enrol farmers for crop insurance." As farmers enrol for crop insurance, which is PMFBY, they may also want to get insurance for their other assets that don't get subsidies. The government wants to cater to this potential demand."

Earlier, the government restructured the PMFBY, which resulted in the insured area rising by 12 per cent in 2022-23 compared to the previous year and reaching over 49.7 million hectares, the report said. The insured area is expected to hit an all-time high of 57.5-60 million hectares in the 2023-24 Kharif season, the Mint report said.

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Other than this, several states, including Andhra Pradesh, re-enlisted in the scheme, while others are planning to rejoin it given the expansion in its coverage under the restructured PMFBY scheme in the respective states. For instance, Jharkhand has decided to re-enter the scheme from Kharif 2024-25, after settling the long pending claims of Rs 765 crore. The total number of insurance companies participating in the scheme has also grown, with 15 taking part in the 2023 tender cycle. In 2020, only 11 insurers were offering their services in the scheme.