BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday claimed that the Maharashtra government was failing to ensure that insurance firms paid adequate compensation to farmers despite heavy premium collection.
The Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party-Congress government was blaming the Centre to hide its failure, he said, speaking to reporters at Parbhani in central Maharashtra.
The BJP-led government headed by him had made insurance firms pay out about Rs 4,000 crore against premium collection of Rs 576 crore, the former chief minister said.
"The state government delayed the tender process. The government has the right to appoint companies for crop insurance. They have failed. To hide these failures, it is blaming the Centre," Mr Fadnavis alleged.
Earlier this week, minister of state for revenue Abdul Sattar had alleged that insurance firms were not paying compensation to farmers.
Against the payment of premium of Rs 5,800 crore by the state and Centre last year, only Rs 1,000 crore were paid out to farmers, he had said.
Agriculture minister Dada Bhuse had said there would be a probe into this issue.
Meanwhile, Mr Fadnavis, who visited COVID-19 centres in Parbhani, said ventilators provided under the PM-CARES Fund were running well in hospitals in the area. There have been allegations that ventilators provided by the Centre were not functioning.
The BJP leader also took a swipe at the state government for declaring standard rates for COVID-19 treatment at private hospitals "after the caseload crossed 50 lakh".
Had the rates been declared earlier, people would not have been forced to pay bills running into lakhs of rupees, he said.
Day After Jharkhand Chopper Row, Rahul Gandhi's Bag Checked In Maharashtra "Maharashtra Not Growing, Slipping Economically": P Chidambaram To NDTV From Auto Rickshaw Driver To Maharashtra Chief Minister: The Eknath Shinde Story 10-Crore Lawsuit Over 3-Second Clip? What's Behind Nayanthara-Dhanush Spat "Doesn't Matter If You Die": Bengaluru Man Slams Son Against Wall, Kills Him "We Ran Out Of Missiles": US Fighter Pilots Recall Iran's Attack On Israel Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Spotlights 4 Key Challenges Before Media CBSE Class 12 Biology Syllabus, Sample Paper, And Marking Scheme Explained "Resolve Complaints On Pollution Within A Week": Panel To Delhi, Other States Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.