PM Fasal Bima Yojana, 2016 = MoAFW

• One Nation – One Scheme theme.
• It will replace 2 schemes: National Agriculture Insurance Scheme (NAIS) and the modified NAIS.
• It was launched along with 2 schemes: Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (WBCIS) and restructured pilot UPIS (Unified Package Insurance Scheme).
• Objectives:
  1. Provide insurance coverage,
  2. Stabilize (not double) income of farmers,
  3. Encourage farmers to adopt innovative and modern agriculture practices and
  4. Ensure flow of credit to Agri sector.
• Components
  1. Uniform premium of 2% for all Kharif crops, 1.5% for all Rabi crops and 5% for all commercial and horticulture crops.
  2. No upper limit on Government subsidies. Earlier there was a capping but now the farmers will get a claim against the full sum insured without any reduction.
  3. Even for the 1st time, Post-harvest losses are also covered.
  4. ‘Area Approach basis’. Use of technology for 1st time - smartphones, remote sensing.
  5. Compulsory for Loanee farmers and Voluntary for other farmers. Now voluntary for all Farmers.
• Centre has halved its contribution to Crop Insurance Schemes - PMFBY. Share of premium subsidy from current 50% to just 25% in irrigated areas and 30% for unirrigated areas.
• The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) is available for all States/UTs and farmers whether loanee, non-loanee, sharecropper or tenant farmers on a voluntary basis.
• The concerned State Government notifies the crops and areas under the Scheme. Therefore, benefits of the scheme are available to all those farmers who are growing notified crops in areas/insurance units notified by the concerned State Government.
• Based on the experience gained, views of various stakeholders and with a view to ensure better transparency, accountability, timely payment of claims to the farmers and to make the scheme more farmer-friendly, Government has comprehensively revised and revamped the Operational Guidelines of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) with effect from Rabi 2018 and Kharif 2020 respectively to ensure the targeted delivery of benefits of the scheme to the farmers adequately and timely.
• Further, National Crop Insurance Portal (NCIP) has been developed for ensuring better administration, coordination, transparency, dissemination of information and delivery of services including direct online enrollment of farmers, uploading/obtaining individual insured farmer’s details for better monitoring and ensuring transfer of claim amount electronically to the individual farmers' Bank Account. To ensure timely payment of claims, the use of a smartphone/CCE-Agri App for real-time transfer of data on the national crop insurance portal has been initiated. Crop Insurance app has also been launched, on which farmers can enrol themselves under the scheme, track their crop insurance and get all information about it.
• Penalty provisions of @12% per annum for late settlement of claims by insurance companies and late release of funds by State Governments have also been stipulated under the scheme.