As the Narendra Modi Government is completing nine years in office this month, Akashvani News is bringing a series of special stories on the initiatives taken by the government. Today, we take a look at the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) which was a historic step taken by the government towards strengthening risk coverage of crops for farmers.
The government launched this crop insurance scheme in the year 2016 with an aim to provide financial support to farmers suffering crop loss or damage arising out of natural calamities. Now in its eight year of implementation, this iconic scheme has become the third largest crop insurance scheme in the world in terms of premium. PMFBY has been implemented in 27 States and Union Territories. The scheme envisages to cover the maximum number of farmers in the ambit of crop insurance by providing comprehensive risk coverage from pre-sowing to post-harvest losses. The scheme offers very low premium rates for farmers to participate in the scheme.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing a programme in Davanagere, Karnataka had said that Government is providing insurance to farmer whose crops get damaged due to natural calamities so that their hard work of the entire year and the crop do not go in waste.
The number of farmers taking advantage of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana is continuously increasing. So far over 37 crore farmers have taken advantage of it. This year three crore 12 lakh farmers have been added to this scheme. Compared to the year 2021-22, the enrollment of farmers has increased by 17 percent in the year 2022-23. Along with this, the process from application to payment is also being simplified by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare.