Opposition Leader Challenges Mamata's Claims Regarding State Crop Insurance Success
Click to start listening
Kolkata, Jan 8 (NationPress) Following West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's assertions about the effectiveness of the state's health insurance program, 'Bangla Shasya Bima', she mentioned that the government is currently transferring Rs 350 crore directly to the bank accounts of 9 lakh farmers. In response, the leader of the opposition in the West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, dismissed these claims by presenting various statistics.
He also condemned the state government's decision to withdraw from a comparable program offered by the Union government, which had been operational in West Bengal for three years—specifically 2016, 2017, and 2018.
“Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY); the flagship crop insurance initiative of the Modi government was in effect in West Bengal for three years from 2016 to 2018. During this timeframe, 135 lakh applications from insured farmers were processed under this scheme. The government of India allocated Rs 637 crore for premium subsidies during this period. Farmers contributed Rs 305 crore towards premiums, while total claims amounting to Rs 1,218 crore were disbursed to farmers in West Bengal under the scheme,” Adhikari articulated in a statement via his official X (formerly Twitter) account on Wednesday evening.
Following this, the opposition leader criticized the state government's choice to exit the central scheme after 2019, asserting that the state’s own program has not been able to avert farmer suicides since the withdrawal from the central initiative.
“The outcome is evident; we continue to witness incidents of farmer suicides in West Bengal, especially when they face distress after crop losses attributed to unseasonable rains, storms, and other weather and irrigation challenges. If the state’s crop insurance scheme is indeed so effective, why has it not succeeded in preventing farmer suicides within the state?” Adhikari's statement concluded.
