Maha announces Rs 31K-crore package for flood-hit farmers

The Maharashtra Government on Tuesday announced a compensation package of Rs 31,628 crore for farmers who suffered massive losses due to rains and floods, asserting that the total assistance will be Rs 48,000 per hectare.

The government will announce a loan waiver in due course, CM Devendra Fadnavis said, adding that a comprehensive memorandum on the losses suffered by farmers was being prepared for submission to the Centre.

Opposition parties, however, dubbed the relief package “hollow” and “too meagre” to help agriculturists rebuild their lives, and demanded a more “robust” assistance as well as a concrete rehabilitation plan.

“This is a comprehensive compensation package of Rs 31,628 crore for farmers who suffered massive losses in recent rains and floods. This package represents an unprecedented effort by the state government to stand firmly with every affected citizen and farmer in this time of crisis,” said Fadnavis while addressing a press conference after chairing a cabinet meeting, flanked by his deputies Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar.

The government will provide Rs 47,000 in cash and Rs 3 lakh through aid under the Employment Guarantee Scheme for every hectare of farmland damaged by floods, the CM stated.

The package includes compensation for crop losses, life and property, soil erosion, direct financial support to farmers, concessions generally extended in drought-like conditions, hospitalisation expenses, ex gratia, damage to houses, shops and cattle sheds.

“The government will announce a loan waiver in due course, but the priority at the moment was to help farmers stand on their feet again,” the chief minister emphasised.