TDP picks holes in YSRCP government claims on crop insurance payment

Amaravati: TDP national spokesman Kommareddy Pattabhi on Tuesday accused the YSRCP government of telling lies to farmers free crop insurance payments as mentioned in the latest full page advertisements published in the media outlets on Tuesday.

Pattabhi said that the government claimed to have decided to pay Rs 1,252 crore under the YSR Free Crop Insurance Scheme, but, as per the district-wise reports, it was clear that only Rs 918 crore was paid. There was a difference of over Rs 334 crore which revealed once again how the ruling YSRCP is openly cheating the people with falsehood.

Addressing a press conference here, the TDP leader said that Chief Minister Jaganmohan Reddy himself claimed in the Assembly that 58.77 lakh farmers were being covered under the crop insurance scheme, but that number was cut short to 49.8 lakh in the latest advertisements on free crop insurance. Whereas, the Union Minister clearly said in Parliament that only 26 lakh farmers in AP became eligible for insurance claims. This was enough to say how much CM Jagan and his Ministers were betraying the farmers and all sections of people in the State with their utter lies.

Pattabhi criticised the YSRCP regime for paying less than 50 per cent claims of the farmers for the 2019 kharif season. As per the Central government's data, claims for Rs 1,819 crore were received under the PM Fasal Beema Yojana. But now, the AP government is prepared to pay just Rs 918 crore. It is not known whether even this amount was being fairly deposited in the bank accounts of the farmers. Under this government, suspicions are arising on each and every programme being implemented in the State.

Pattabhi asserted that while the YSRCP paid less than 50 per cent insurance claims, the previous TDP regime had an excellent track record of paying 100 per cent claims at the rate of Rs 1,874 crore out of Rs 1,879 crore for 2018-19, Rs 779 cr out of Rs 779 cr for 2017-18 and Rs 943 cr out of Rs 943 cr for 2016-17. The YSRCP leaders should at least accept the figures and begin telling facts to the farmers and the general public, he added.