PMFBY disbursed ₹90,000 crore to farmers in five years: Agri Minister
The government has taken several measures to make the PM Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) more meaningful for farmers. During five years of the scheme’s existence, farmers were given around ₹90,000 crore in claims, siad Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Wednesday.
“The scheme is a milestone crop insurance scheme covering full crop cycle against the losses occurring due to non-preventable natural risk. The scheme was fully operational during the Covid-19 lockdown, distributing claims of over ₹8741.3 crore to 69.70 lakh farmers across India,” Tomar said during a virtual interaction with PMFBY stakeholders to mark completion of five years of the flagship crop insurance scheme.
Ergos raises ₹22.5 crore from UK’s CDC
Agritech start-up Ergos, which provides post harvest storage solutions to small farmers in Bihar, has received fresh funding of $3 million (₹22.5 crore) from CDC, the UK’s impact investor and development finance institution.
With this latest investment, Ergos has closed the Series A funding of ₹81 crore. Last year Aavishkaar Capital had invested ₹35 crore and Chiratae Ventures had invested ₹23.5 crore as part of the same round.
Tobacco farmers seek withdraw of COTPA Amendment Bill
The Federation of All India Farmer Associations (FAIFA) has appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to go ahead with the COTPA Bill, which will boost the illegal cigarette trade in the country.
This, in turn, would adversely impact the domestic demand for the home grown tobacco and incomes of the tobacco farmers in the country.
