Lok Sabha Question No. 1424 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-26
Subject: Crop Losses due to Heavy rains and Floods
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Manoj Kumar Tiwari, Bidyut Baran Mahato, Shrirang Appa Barne, Prataprao  Jadhav, Sanjay Sadashivrao Mandlik, Sambhajirao Mane Dhairyasheel, Sudheer Gupta, Ravindra Kushawaha, Ram Kripal Yadav, Subrata Pathak

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1424

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 26 TH  JULY, 2022

## CROP LOSSES DUE TO HEAVY RAINS AND FLOODS

1424.  SHRI MANOJ TIWARI:

SHRI BIDYUT BARAN MAHATO:

SHRI SHRIRANG APPA BARNE:

SHRI PRATAPRAO JADHAV:

SHRI SANJAY SADASHIVRAO MANDLIK:

SHRI DHAIRYASHEEL SAMBHAJIRAO MANE:

SHRI SUDHEER GUPTA:

SHRI RAVINDRA KUSHWAHA:

SHRI RAM KRIPAL YADAV:

SHRI SUBRAT PATHAK:

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

- (a) whether many States in the country have been affected by heavy rains and consequent floods in the recent months and that has resulted in destruction of standing crops, fruits and vegetables to a great extent;

(b) if so, the details of the total loss of crops/paddy/ vegetables and the districts that have been severely affected;

- (c) whether the State Governments have demanded any assistance to compensate for the loss suffered by the farmers and if so, the details thereof;

(d) whether any Central Government team had visited to assess the damage and if so, the details of their assessment;

(e) whether the Government has any plan to waive loan of farmers in the affected districts and if so, the details thereof; and

(f) the measures taken by the Government to change cropping patterns which will help to mitigate changes in climate across the country?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ष एवं कसान कयाण मंी (SHRI NARENDRA SINGH TOMAR)

(a) to (d): The  estimation  in  regard  to  damages  to  crops  is  done  by  the  concerned State  Governments.    As  on  12.07.2022  (provisional),  the  following  State  Governments reported damage to crop area due to flood during 2022:

| Sl. No.   | State             |   Crop area affected due to flood (in hectares) |
|-----------|-------------------|-------------------------------------------------|
| 1.        | Arunachal Pradesh |                                              67 |
| 2.        | Assam             |                                          240097 |
| 3.        | Karnataka         |                                            1479 |
| 4.        | Meghalaya         |                                            1102 |
| 5.        | Nagaland          |                                             294 |
| 6.        | Sikkim            |                                             169 |
|           | Total             |                                          243208 |

The  State  Government  is  primarily  responsible  for  providing  necessary  relief measures  in  the  wake  of  natural  calamities,  including  flood.  For  undertaking  relief measures, funds are available with the State Government in the form of State Disaster Response  Fund  (SDRF).  Additional  financial  assistance,  over  and  above  SDRF,  is considered from the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for natural calamities of a severe nature and is approved on the basis of a Memorandum received from the State Government,  in  accordance  with  established  procedures.    An  Inter-Ministerial  Central Team (IMCT) is constituted and deputed for an on-the-spot assessment of damage and requirement of funds for relief operations, as per the extant items and norms.  The report of the IMCT is considered by the Sub Committee of the National Executive Committee (SC-NEC). Thereafter, the High Level Committee (HLC) approves the final quantum of financial assistance.

So  far,  in  2022-23  the  Ministry  of  Home  Affairs  have  constituted  /deputed  InterMinisterial  Central  Teams  (IMCTs)  to  the  States  of  Assam,  Meghalaya,  Telangana, Maharashtra and Gujarat for assessment of damages on the ground.

(e): No, Sir. However,    the Department  of  Agriculture  and  Farmers  Welfare  is implementing 'Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima  Yojana' since Kharif 2016, along with 'Restructured  Weather  Based  Crop  Insurance  Scheme'  to  provide  comprehensive  risk cover in  the  event  of  crop  damage  due  to  natural  calamities  and  preventable  risks  and provide financial support to the insured farmers against their notified insurance coverage. However, these Insurance Schemes are voluntary in nature.

(f): Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has developed Direct Seeded Rice (DSR)  as  an  alternative to the traditional transplanting  method  and  it  has  been demonstrated  on  a  large  scale  in  the  farmers'  fields.  In  addition,  horticulture,  oilseeds, maize etc. are being promoted as crop diversification measures. ICAR has also identified alternate and efficient cropping systems with the principles of crop diversification across different agro-climatic conditions in order to overcome the impact of climate change.

Further, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare is implementing the Crop Diversification  Programme  (CDP) in  the  Original  Green  Revolution  States  i.e.  Haryana, Punjab  &  Uttar  Pradesh  (western  part)  since  2013-14  to  divert  the  area  of  a  water intensive  paddy  crop  to  alternative  crops  like  pulses,  oilseeds,  coarse  cereals,  nutri cereals, cotton etc.

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