Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana scam in Gujarat bigger than Rafale, alleges Congress

The Gujarat unit of the Congress party has alleged that the BJP government in Gujarat led by CM Vijay Rupani indulged in mass-scale corruption in the Central government-sponsored crop insurance scheme — Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) — by fudging figures and diverting funds to benefit private insurance companies.

Speaking to National Herald, Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) president Amit Chavada claimed that 90.06% insurance amount was not paid to eligible farmers in across the state during the Kharif season.

He claimed that this was unearthed during a survey conducted by Congress party volunteers. “Congress volunteers accessed the figures of insurance amount paid and crop harvest in two villages in Junagadh in 2018. In Amargadh village, villagers were eligible for ₹62,252 per hectare but were paid only ₹1,007.90. So, by our calculation of only one village, the state government has not paid 90.06% insurance amount to farmers and it is an indicator of a much bigger scam which needs to be probed,” he said.

As per media reports, in the Kharif season of 2018, 15.53 lakh farmers were covered under the PMFBY in Gujarat, where a total of ₹366 crores was paid as premium by farmers in the state. In comparison, during the recently concluded Kharif season of 2019, only 13.69 lakh farmers got enrolled under the PMFBY, a decline of 12 per cent.

Though the Gujarat unit of the BJP refuted the allegations, Gujarat Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi claimed: “According to an estimate, the scam is bigger than Rafale”.

“The Rupani government has diverted more than ₹40,000 crores allotted under the PFBY to benefit private insurance companies. This needs to be probed,” asserted Doshi.