Nagpur: Close on the heels of farmers’ protest across the state over crop compensation among other demands, the state government has decided to amend the eligibility criteria of the compensation, making over 50% cotton growers, who were hit the most due to pink bollworm attack, eligible for the much-needed relief. The decision on the amendment was taken on Saturday.
With this amendment, the compensation amount will now be decided as per the survey conducted jointly by the revenue and the agriculture departments in December last year. Earlier, the revenue and the forest departments, through a notification dated February 23, had announced the compensation as per the survey conducted under Prime Minister Crop Insurance Scheme. TOI was the first to report about the notification, on February 25, highlighting not many farmers to get the benefit.
The amendment has certainly raised beneficiary from mere less than 10% to a over 50% in the state only but the compensation amount was not increased.
In both the notifications issued on Saturday and on February 23, only one criteria of 33% or more crop damage eligibility for compensation is the same.
According to a data of the district, there is a huge difference between survey of the revenue and the agriculture departments, and that of the PM Crop Insurance Scheme.
As per PM Crop Insurance Scheme, 13,954 of total 2,11,000 cotton growers from the district were eligible for the compensation making it 6.61% beneficiaries. As against the cultivation of 2,39,135 hectare, survey reported damage to 14,853 hectare (6.21%), making to total compensation amount to Rs13.25 crore. Some parts of two of total 14 tehsils were shown as affected.
As per the joint survey of the revenue and the agriculture departments, the compensation amount counts to Rs68.57 crore, taking an increase of Rs55.32 crore, after almost 52% (1,10,000) increase in the number of beneficiaries on 69,193 hectares of cultivated land post amendment.
Maharashtra agriculture minister Pandurang Phundkar had announced the damage to over 50% cotton crop from total cultivation of 41 lakh hectares in the state during winter session of the assembly held in the city in December last year.
The same amendment will be applicable for the damage to paddy crop which was hit due to pest attack (tudtude). However, the damage to paddy crop is less compared with the cotton. As per data available from the district administration, 764 hectare of total cultivation of 1,04,600 hectare has become eligible for compensation in two tehsils — Ramtek and Kuhi — of the district. Compensation amount will be Rs1.67 crore as per survey conducted by the revenue and the agriculture departments.
The survey under PM Crop Insurance Scheme, however, reported zero loss to the paddy in the district.
Phundkar said the government has been trying to increase the compensation amount by recovering money from seed companies as per provisions in The Maharashtra Cotton Seeds Act, 2009. “We held a series of meetings with the companies and notices will be served soon. We requested Rs2,500 crore aid from the Centre under National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF). But we decided not to wait and give compensation from the state’s funds to the farmers,” he said.
