Govt’s own bank performs poorly

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 26

Even as the state government is trying hard to make Prime Minister Fasal Bima Yojana a success, its own cooperative banks are undoing its efforts by choosing not to insure crops of farmers.

Sources said Haryana State Cooperative Apex Bank Limited (HARCO Bank), a cooperative bank of the state government, advanced loans to 2,22,485 farmers as on August 10. However, out of the 2,22,485 eligible farmers, the bank covered merely 69,094 farmers under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) and collected a premium of Rs 5.69 crore from them.

In contrast, nationalised banks together had 4,59,394 eligible farmers whom they had advanced loans for the crops. The banks covered 4,56,626 of them under the PMFBY and collected Rs 78.83 crore from them as premium.

Similarly, private banks in Haryana advanced loans to 28,938 farmers and covered 28,517 of them under the PMFMY, collecting a premium of Rs 16.38 crore.

Together, commercial and private banks covered 4,85,143 farmers under the crop insurance scheme out of 4,88,332 who obtained loans from them.

“While private and commercial banks have complied exceptionally well to the government’s direction on PMFBY and registered 99.34 per cent of the total eligible farmers, government’s own cooperative bank HARCO seems to have worked for the failure of the scheme by covering merely 31 per cent of its borrowers,” said sources.

Among the commercial banks that covered maximum farmers are Punjab National Bank (1,67,597), SBI (50,391), State Bank of Patiala (46,371) and Central Bank of India (26,711).

Among private banks, HDFC covered all 19,893 farmers who availed loan from its branches.

Satbir Sharma, Managing Director, HARCO Bank, said while private and commercial banks pledged land for loans, the funds advanced by his bank were clean loans without any tangible security.

“Initially, we also started insurance of crops, but we had to hold back due to protests from farmers. We hope to perform much better next year because farmers were gradually becoming aware of the benefits of the PMFBY,” said Sharma.