In Uttar Pradesh 25 out of 80 districts have been affected by unseasonal rains.
Unseasonal rains, twice in two weeks, have wreaked havoc in lives of farmers in many parts of the country including Uttar Pradesh where 25 out of 80 districts have been affected. To make matters worse the National Corp Insurance Programme or NCIP, which is meant to help the farmers, has been a non-starter.
55-year-old Bhagirath, a farmer in Barabanki, has nothing left except his damaged wheat produce and a loan of Rs 35,000. Surveying his half acre plot, he tells NDTV, "I am a bladder patient but there is no money to even buy medicines. What should I do, kill myself?"
Bhagirath's helper on the farm is his 11-year-old son Mithun who had to drop out of school because there was no money to pay his fees. He says "I miss school but can't go. I have to do all the field work." He has two older sisters waiting to be married.
Many Barabanki farmers, including Bhagirath, are insured under an NCIP scheme, but are yet to receive any benefits from it. The erratic weather of last two weeks should have meant a bailout for farmers like Bhagirath under NCIP, but the framework makes it difficult for them to avail benefits.
For instance, the scheme provides coverage for hailstorm, doesn't have a provision for unseasonal rains. Another criterion is that the damage to the crop has to be more than 50 per cent, which has to be assessed at the Gram Panchayat level. Marginal farmers, who may have lost their entire produce, don't get compensated if the overall damage in the area is less.
"Farmers cannot directly claim insurance. We can only process the claims after the district authorities give us the order after a loss assessment", explains Pragyesh Kumar, Branch Manager of Gramin Bank of Aryavrat, where the farmers have their account.
District Manager Yogeshwar Ram Mishra says that while assistance is being provided to the affected farmers, "there are detailed guidelines under the insurance scheme under which we all are bound to work within."