Central team to assess crop damage in Punjab

NEW DELHI, Oct 21: A team of officers from the Union Ministry of Food has left for Punjab to make an on the spot assessment of damage cau...

NEW DELHI, Oct 21: A team of officers from the Union Ministry of Food has left for Punjab to make an on the spot assessment of damage caused to crops due to unseasonal rains in the recent past. The team will submit its report within two days.

Headed by the joint commissioner, storage and research in the Ministry of Food and Consumer Affairs, B B Patnaik, and comprising officers of the Food Corporation of India (FCI), the team will visit the mandis in Punjab to take stock of the extent of damage caused to foodgrains.

The Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal had met the Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and the Minister of Food and Consumer Affairs SS Barnala here yesterday seeking a financial assistance to compensate farmers who have suffered the losses.

Meanwhile, Vajpayee today emphasised the need for providing an effective crop insurance scheme to protect farmers whose crops often get damaged due to the ravages of flood and drought.

Speaking at the first meeting of the parliamentaryconsultative committee attached to the Agriculture Ministry, Vajpayee said the present comprehensive crop insurance scheme needs to be strengthened.

He said the scheme has proved valuable and at the same time was found inadequate.

Vajpayee said that farmers are able to get only 15 per cent of their credit requirement by banks.

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The national agenda for governance has set a target of doubling agriculture production in 10 years in order to meet the growing domestic needs.He said the details of the modified crop insurance scheme would be finalised after extensive discussion.