The Agriculture Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar, unveiled the ‘DigiClaim’ platform on Thursday, which aims to facilitate the quick and efficient payment of insurance claims to insured farmers under the national crop insurance portal.
Tomar transferred a total insurance claim worth Rs 1,260.35 crore to farmers in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, and Haryana with a click of a button via the DigiClaim platform.
The platform aims to expedite the claim disbursal process and address the delays in the current system. It allows farmers to receive their claim amounts digitally, making them more self-reliant and empowered. Under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), a total of Rs 1.32 lakh crore has been disbursed to insured farmers to date, according to the Minister.
The Centre is collaborating with all states who exited the PMFBY, and discussions have been held with senior officials of the state governments. The Andhra Pradesh and Punjab governments are returning to the scheme, setting an example of cooperative federalism.
Other states such as Telangana, Gujarat, Bihar, West Bengal, and Jharkhand have also been approached to rejoin the PMFBY, and Telangana and Jharkhand have shown a willingness to come back.
Farmers' claims will be processed transparently and responsibly using the DigiClaim platform, which will lower the claim reversal percentage. Farmers may take advantage of the benefits of the programme by using the platform to follow the claim settlement process in real time on their mobile devices. The National Crop Insurance Portal (NCIP) and the Public Finance Management System (PFMS) interface makes the technology possible.
Manoj Ahuja, the secretary of agriculture, has encouraged state governments to upload production data to the crop insurance site and deliver their share of the premium on schedule so that claims can be transferred to farmers' bank accounts without issue.
The launch was attended by various dignitaries, including Uttar Pradesh Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi, Minister of State for Agriculture Kailash Choudhary, CMDs of Agriculture Insurance Company of India Ltd and SBI General Insurance. The launch of the DigiClaim platform is yet another example of the PMFBY’s commitment to leveraging advanced technological solutions such as automated calculation and disbursement of crop insurance claims.
