Settle insurance claims of flood affected farmers soon : Nirmala Sitharaman
Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday instructed insurance companies and the district administration to settle the claims of the eligible 2.5 lakh farmers covered under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) in Thoothukudi as the state kept its fingers crossed over the release of funds under the National Disaster Response Fund.
Usually, the Centre allocates funds for disasters in states. Under the 15th Finance Commission, the state’s share was Rs 900 crore.
This includes a 75% share from the central government share and a 25% state share. The state is seeking the funds under the NDRF, which is kept for states hit by national calamities.
The state has been seeking more than Rs 5000 crore for the southern districts under the NDRF fund while for the Chennai floods, it has sought Rs 7,033 crore. Under the ad hoc basis, the state has pushed for the release of Rs 2,000 crore as relief measures for the flood-hit.
The announcement to settle the claims of the farmers was made after the minister visited the flood-hit Thoothukudi district which was ravaged by floods due to extreme rainfall last week.
The total area covered under PMFBY in Thoothukudi district is 1.38 lakh hectares.
The insurance companies were instructed to organise a series of camps in the coming days for the flood-affected areas for fast settlement of various insurance claims in coordination with the district administration.