Deadline extended for paying crop insurance premiums

Minister for Agriculture Eknath Khadse on Friday announced that the state Government has extended the deadline for paying the premium for the crop insurance scheme by seven days. Farmers can pay the premium till August 7, 2015.

Farmers in the state would have a sigh of relief since their crops can now be insured. The deadline for paying the premium had come to an end today. Making a statement in the upper house, the Vidhan Parishad, which was working even after the lower house, the Vidhan Sabha, had adjourned, Khadse made this announcement.

Khadse informed the House that additional chief secretary to the agriculture department DK Jain was sent to New Delhi to request union minister Radha Mohan Singh and officials to extend the deadline because farmers were already facing hardship and also gram panchayat elections.

The state government, at present, provides crop insurance benefits to farmers and, for the last kharif season, the agriculture department has provided crop insurance worth Rs1,595 crore.

The crop insurance scheme is run though the Agriculture Insurance Company of India, which is a state-run firm.