Back in power after 15 months, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Madhya Pradesh has been taking many pro-farmer decisions. The state government has decided to insure all farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. The final government go-ahead is due soon, sources said.
"Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is a farmer's son, and so, he is in a better position to empathize with farmers' problems. That's why the state government has been taking several pro-farmer measures. The government will soon decide on farmers' crops insurance under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana," State's Agriculture Minister Kamal Patel told in an exclusive interview.
Patel lashed out at the previous Congress government in the state, saying "the Kamal Nath-led dispensation was in fact a pro-industrialist government, which is why it did not focus on farmers". He said the Nath government "undid whatever the BJP government had done for farmers in its 15-year rule."
He said the Chouhan government firmly believes that the state's prosperity can be ensured only by making the farmers prosperous. "The BJP government is back in the saddle, and we are taking pro-farmer measures."
Madhya Pradesh with a population of 7.5 crore has around 65 lakh farmers out of which around 36 lakh farmers have been insured. The current premium is 12 per cent for the crop insurance scheme out which a farmer has to pay 2 per cent, the rest is shared by the state and the Centre. There is a possibility of the premium amount going down if the number of farmers being covered is increased.
"If every farmer is insured, then the number of farmers so covered will rise, enabling the government to reduce the premium to 8-10 per cent, which would take some burden off the farmers. So, the government is trying to increase the coverage of farmers," he said.
Patel alleged that the previous Kamal Nath government had not deposited the premium amount of farmers' insurance, which led the farmers not getting the insurance amount. "Soon after the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government took over, this premium amount was deposited, facilitating insurance payment of Rs 2,990 crore to 15 lakh lakh farmers," he said.
At present purchasing of harvested crops is continuing amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Minister said to ensure that farmers are not put to avoidable troubles, the farmers are being informed through SMSs, and social distancing and other measures are also being ensured in Mandis.
Kamal Patel has been in the Chouhan ministry earlier too. As the Revenue Minister in his previous tenure, he had offered several innovative measures. He is now working on several plans to bring about a drastic change in the rural landscape of the state.
( With inputs from IANS )