Ludhiana: Punjab agriculture minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian Tuesday defended the state’s decision not to implement the Centre’s Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) in its present form, arguing that the scheme needs to be made more farmer-friendly before it can benefit Punjab’s cultivators.His remarks come amid criticism from Union ministers, including agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who recently questioned Punjab’s refusal to adopt the crop insurance scheme despite recurring losses caused by floods and other natural calamities.Khuddian alleged that the Centre was not adequately addressing Punjab’s concerns and said the existing framework of PMFBY disadvantages farmers by treating an entire block as a single insurance unit. “A block may comprise 50 villages. If only a few villages suffer crop losses due to flood or disease, affected farmers may not receive compensation because losses are assessed at the block level,” he said.Punjab has repeatedly urged the Centre to make smaller units such as an acre or hectare the basis for insurance assessment, but the demand has not been accepted, he added. “In its current form, the scheme would benefit insurance companies more than farmers and is therefore not viable for Punjab,” Khuddian said.The minister also appealed to farmers to adopt scientific nutrient management practices and get their soil tested before applying fertilisers. Blind application of fertilisers, he said, can lead to nutrient imbalance and unnecessary expenditure.On reports of subsidised agricultural urea being diverted for industrial use, Khuddian warned of strict action against violators. He also said the state govt had initiated action against the sale of spurious fertilisers in districts including Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Ferozepur.Khuddian was speaking at a programme where he distributed certificates to fertiliser dealers trained by PAMETI. He said fertiliser dealers interact closely with farmers and, therefore, need to stay updated on scientific and technical developments in agriculture to guide cultivators effectively.
