Govt aims 40% sown area under insurance cover in 2017-18

The government is aiming to bring 40 per cent of gross sown area of 194.4 million hectare under crop insurance schemes in 2017-18 season beginning July.

In 2016-17 crop year, about 26.28 per cent or 51.1 million hectare of gross area under crops was insured.

At present, crops are being insured under two schemes: Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (RWBCIS) and Pradhan Manthri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). The PMFBY was launched last year.

"In first year of the implementation of the PMFBY, a substantial progress has been achieved. In 2017-18, the target for insured area is set at 40 per cent gross cropped area, which translates to 77.6 million hectare," a senior Agriculture Ministry official told

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)