Lok Sabha Question No. 4291 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-19
Subject: Enrollment of Farmers under PMFBY
Ministry: AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE
Asked by: Shri Ajay Kumar Mandal

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4291

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 19 TH  AUGUST, 2025

## ENROLLMENT OF FARMERS UNDER PMFBY

## 4291. SHRI AJAY KUMAR MANDAL:

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

- (a) whether innovative outreach methods like mobile apps and village-level digital kiosks are  being  used  to  help  farmers  understand  and  enroll  in  Pradhan  Mantri  Fasal  Bima Yojana, if so, the details thereof and the extent of success achieved therein;
- (b) whether artificial intelligence is being used to predict crop risks and prevent farmer losses, particularly in regions like Bihar which are facing climate challenges and if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) whether any success has been achieved from the pilot projects using smart technology for  crop  monitoring,  if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with  the  benefits  delivered  to  the farmer?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR AGRICULTURE AND FARMERS WELFARE कृ ͪष एवं ͩकसान कãयाण राÏय मंğी (SHRI  RAMNATH THAKUR)

- (a):  Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) envisages use of improved technology. Accordingly,  National  Crop  Insurance  Portal  (NCIP)  and  Application  for  Intermediary Enrolment (AIDE) app have been developed to disseminate information about the scheme to the farmers.   Farmers can insure themselves through the portal and app and check the status of their application, claims etc.  Further, Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) under Common  Service  Centres  (CSCs)  have  also  been  engaged  to  enroll  farmers  and disseminate information regarding coverage, claims etc. under the scheme.    During 202425, 22.87 lakh farmer applications have been enrolled through AIDE app and directly on NCIP.
- (b):  Government  has  taken  various  steps  to  strengthen  implementation  of  the  scheme, leveraging technology in implementation of the scheme, capturing of yield data/Crop Cutting Experiments  (CCEs)  data  through  CCE-Agri  App  for  directly  uploading  it  on  the  NCIP, allowing insurance companies to witness the conduct of CCEs, integration of State land records with National Crop Insurance Portal (NCIP), roll out of app for farmers where they can check the status of their applications, enrollment of farmers through CSCs  etc.

An  AI  based  chatbot  namely  'PMFBY  WhatsApp  Chatbot'  to  assist  the  Farmers regarding PMFBY scheme has been initiated.

In  addition  to  above,  the  Government  has  employed  Artificial  Intelligence  (AI) methods to address various challenges in the agriculture sector to aid farmers.  Some of the initiatives are given below:

- i. 'Kisan e-Mitra', an AI-powered chatbot, has been developed to assist farmers with responses to the queries about the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Scheme.  This solution supports  multiple  languages  and  is  evolving  to  assist  with  other  government programs.
- ii. National Pest Surveillance System, for tackling the loss of produce due to climate change, utilizes AI and Machine Learning to detect pest infestation in crop issues, enabling timely intervention for healthier crops.

PMFBY introduced in the country from Kharif 2016 season is voluntary for States as well as for farmers.   State Government of Bihar initially implemented the scheme for two years i.e. 2016-17 and 2017-18 and is not implementing the scheme thereafter.  However, they are implementing their own scheme, 'Bihar Rajya Fasal Sahayata Yojana', which is a noninsurance, relief assistance scheme.

(c): Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has carried out pilot studies for timely and  transparent  yield  estimation  under  PMFBY  using  technology  by  engaging  various Government  and  private  agencies  through  Mahalanobis  National  Crop  Forecast  Centre (MNCFC). Based on the findings of these pilots and after discussions with stakeholders & technical  consultations, YES-TECH (Yield Estimation System Based on Technology) has been introduced for paddy and wheat crops from Kharif 2023 and for Soyabean crop from  Kharif  2024.  Government  has  implemented  technology  based  yield  estimation  in combination with conventional Crop Cutting Experiments (CCEs) based yield estimation for improving crop loss assessment and achieving timely insurance claims payout for farmers. Under this initiative, 30% weightage to yield estimation has mandatorily been assigned to YES-TECH derived yield.

10  States are currently implementing YESTECH and are successfully calculating claims  and  payout  using  YESTECH.      No  dispute  has  been  reported  from  any  of  the stakeholders  in  these  States  under  YESTECH,  thereby,  increasing  transparency  and efficiency  in  the  system.    Madhya  Pradesh  State  Government  is  implementing  100% technology based yield estimation.

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