Lok Sabha Question No. 712 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-02-07
Subject: Crop Loss Due to Climate Change
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: ALOK SANJAR

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, COOPERATION AND FARMERS WELFARE

## LOK  SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 712

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 7 TH  FEBRUARY, 2017

## CROP LOSS DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE

## 712.   SHRI ALOK SANJAR:

Will the Minister of AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ष एवं कसान कयाण मंी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  agriculture has become  a  risky  profession/enterprise due  to change  in climate/weather and regional calamities;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has laid down any criteria to assess the damage to major crops due to climate/weather change and regional calamities and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) whether  the  Pradhan  Mantri  Fasal  Bima  Yojana  adequately  covers  all  the  risks  in agriculture sector and provide security to farmers in the form of crop insurance and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE

कृ ष एवं कसान कयाण मंालय म राय मंी (SHRI S.S. AHLUWALIA)

- (a) & (b): The frequent climatic/ weather variations and uneven rainfall distribution adversely impact the level of agriculture production and productivity. Due to two consecutive years  of  deficient  and  untimely  rainfall  in  the  country,  the  total  foodgrains  production  has declined from 265.04 million tonnes in 2013-14 to 252.02 million tonnes in 2014-15 and 252.12 million tonnes in 2015-16.
- (c): Agriculture  is  a  state  subject,  and  primary  responsibility  of  the  state  government  and many states have historically well defined methodology of assessing damage/crop loss arising due  to  natural  calamities.  However,  in  order  to  have  a  uniform  and  scientific  basis  of assessment of crop loss due to drought and other disasters, the Union Government in 2015 circulated the common guiding principles to all the state governments for incorporating in their prescribed  methodology  for  submitting  Memorandum  for  seeking  assistance  under  National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF), these include:
- (i) Declaring standard yield in a notified insurance unit on the basis of average yield of past seven years, excluding calamity years.

(ii) Compiling  crop  yield  data  for  each  village/taluka/district  through  crop  cutting experiment depending upon the states' practice.

(iii) Assessment by eye-survey through a joint committee consisting of all stakeholders.

(iv) In  case  of  33%  or  more  visualized  damages,  the  same  is  to  be  assessed/ validated through an assessment procedure followed by a state and providing the same to  the  affected  people,  though  crop  cutting  experiment  is  considered  the  most  robust methodology and needs to be conducted to cover atleast 80% of the area sown in the case of all major crops.

(v) Further  detailed  guidelines,  in  addition  to  the  above,  cover  such  issues  as adopting  a  system  of  inviting  objections  from  interested  groups;  comparison  with  the standard yield; prescription of formats for calculation of assistance for small and marginal farmers; comparison of crop loss projected with crop production estimates; and validating the crop losses through space technology/drones.

(d): The  Pradhan  Mantri  Fasal  Bima  Yojana  provides  for  comprehensive  risk  insurance against crop damage from pre-sowing to post-harvest stage for food crops (cereals, millets and pulses),  oilseeds  and  annual  commercial  horticultural  crops  notified  by  the  concerned  State Government.  The  Scheme  provides  a  safeguard  against  widespread  yield  loss  due  to  nonpreventable natural risks, viz., flood, inundation, landslide, drought, dry spells, cyclone, etc., and against  farm  level  yield  loss  due  to  localized  risks  (hailstorm,  landslide  and  inundation),  low sowing and post-harvest losses.

********