May 31, 2018
Bengal Govt to give financial aid to farmers affected by hailstorms
Farmers in the State affected due to damage to their crops in the recent hailstorms will get financial assistance from the State Agriculture Department. Damage to 33 per cent or more of the total crops would make a farmer eligible for the aid. The department has already started a survey across all the districts to determine the quantum of loss for each farmer.
Mouzas in the districts of Purba Bardhaman, Paschim Bardhaman, Birbhum, Purba Medinipur, Paschim Medinipur, Murshidabad and a few others were badly affected.
It may be mentioned that Bengal is the first state in the country to introduce crop insurance scheme, where the beneficiaries will not have to pay any amount as insurance premium in case of any natural disaster. Generally, the farmers have to bear 50 percent of the total cost of the insurance premium. Last year, financial assistance was paid by the State Government to farmers whose crops suffered due to floods.
Fasal Bima Yojana, the crop insurance scheme, a brainchild of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was introduced to ensure that the farmers are not overburdened with any debt.
Source: Millennium Post
