THANJAVUR: Despite the extension of cut-off date for insuring crop to August 14 from July 31, kuruvai paddy in only 18% of the total cultivated area has been covered in Thanjavur district this year. While farmers attribute this to the “poor” settlement of claims by insurance companies in the previous years, agriculture and welfare department sources blame the “low interest” among farmers to insure the seasonal crop as many of them harvest well ahead of the onset of the monsoon, thereby facing lesser risks.
According to agriculture officials, kuruvai paddy cultivation has been taken up on about 79,000 hectares in Thanjavur district this year. Of this crop on only 13,820 hectares has been insured by the farmers by paying premium, according to data made available in the website of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) – the Union government’s crop insurance scheme. This works out to only around 18% of the total area cultivated. During the initial cut-off date of July 31, 9,600 hectares of the total 64,800 hectares on which kuruvai paddy was raised in the district until then was insured. P Senthilkumar, a farmer from Ammapettai, said, "During previous years, the claims settlement by insurance companies for crop damage was abysmal in the district. Hence the farmers are not keen to insure (their kuruvai paddy)." S Sivakumar, a farmer from Tiruvaiyaru, said many farmers with pump sets have advanced their kuruvai cultivation cycle and are about to harvest the paddy.
Hence they don't prefer insuring their seasonal crop, he added. When enquired, an agriculture official said many farmers have gone in for early kuruvai cultivation which will be harvested well ahead of onset of the northeast monsoon. Hence the risk is low, the official added. Of the 14 blocks, farmers in five who started cultivating late will face monsoon risks. Hence, they will prefer insuring their crop, the official further said. In 2024, kuruvai paddy on about 5,090 hectares, which translates to about 10% of the total cultivation area, was insured in the district. Meanwhile, in Tiruvarur district, kuruvai paddy on 37,110 hectares has been insured, which is 48% of the total cultivated area of 77,573 hectares. Officials attributed it to most of the farmers in the district taking up kuruvai cultivation late, i.e. only after the release of River Cauvery water reaching their fields.