AMN / HYDERABAD

Telangana State government will rejoin the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) scheme in the interests of farmers and to save them from losses caused by natural calamities. In a release, Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy said that there has been no crop insurance scheme in Telangana, ever since the BRS government opted out of the scheme in 2020.

It said that farmers have been subject to huge losses due to crop damage on account of heavy rains, floods, and hailstorms. It added that there is no scope to claim compensation considering that the crop insurance scheme does not exist in Telangana.

The release further stated that the Chief Minister has decided to maintain cordial relations with the BJP-led government at the Centre to protect the interests of the State. The Chief Minister held a meeting with Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao and PMFBY CEO and Joint Secretary in Union Agriculture Ministry Ritesh Chauhan in Hyderabad Friday.

They discussed the farmer insurance scheme from 2016 till its withdrawal in 2020. Now that the State has decided to rejoin the PMFBY scheme, farmers will get crop insurance from the next crop season. Mr Reddy reiterated that the State government intended to strengthen the agriculture sector and pursue farmer-centric welfare policies.