The Finance Minister called for an important meeting with the heads of all four PSU general insurance companies and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India. Here, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee requested LIC to come up with a life insurance policy for the Indian farmers – Kisan Bima Yojana,
FM Pranab Mukherjee took the example of Janashree Bima Yojana – the social security scheme and requested LIC Chairman DK Mehrotra to work on the same lines for farmers.
With a population of over 1.2 billion, India has witnessed accelerated economic growth and has brought significant social benefits to the country. But there is a huge disparity in the income and human development in rural areas when compared to urban areas. It is important for India to build a productive, competitive, and diversified agricultural sector and facilitate rural employment. This can be achieved by providing basic social security to farmers and related occupations.
Many farmers in India are deprived of financing schemes and other facilities by banks, NBFCs and credit bodies. And the ones who have availed loans need some protection in case of bad weather conditions and poor harvest. There is no place to go for farmers when they are buried in debt and this is where an insurance policy for them is need of the hour. Mr. Mukherjee said that he felt that the farmers of our country are the most marginalised group and need agriculture insurance on priority.
With the nations trust in LIC, he requested the officials of LIC to come with a good insurance policy especially for farmers which extends them some kind of social security.
About LIC Janashree Bima Yojana
The objective of the LIC Janashree Bima Yojana is to provide life insurance protection to the rural and urban poor persons below poverty line and marginally above the poverty line. The premium under the scheme is Rs.200/-per annum per member. 50% of the premium i.e. Rs.100/- will be contributed by the member and/or Nodal Agency/State Government. Balance 50% will be borne by the Social Security Fund. To avail this scheme, the person has to be
– Aged between 18 and 59 years.
– Below or marginally above poverty line
– A member of any of the approved vocation/occupation groups
