Already hit by a cyclone and the pandemic, hiked insurance premium norms are squeezing the district’s 5,000-strong community, and there is no help from the state government
Farmers Ajay Baphna and Kunal Mali show the spoiled chikoos on a farm in Dahanu, on Sunday. Pics/Hanif Patel
Hundreds of chikoo growers in Dahanu will take to the streets today to protest against the steep hike in insurance premium, which is costing them a bomb at a time when they are already suffering from losses incurred in Cyclone Tauktae. The state government increased premium six-fold to Rs 18,000, but kept the insurance claim amounts the same. Till last year, the premium was just Rs 3,000, the farmers said. They claim they approached the government, but got no help.
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A heap of spoiled chikoos on a farm in Dahanu
There are over 5,000 chikoo farmers in Dahanu, which is an ecologically fragile zone, where residents have only one source of earning — farming.
They had met ministers and government officials last week, seeking relief, but the meeting was inconclusive. Hence, they have decided to show their dissent on the streets. They plan to gather at prominent locations in Dahanu and form human chains, to protest the hike, which is only for chikoo farmers of Palghar and Thane districts.
‘Step-motherly treatment’
Upset with the state government, Chikoo farmers in Palghar district sought to know the reason for this “step-motherly” treatment. mid-day visited a number of chikoo farmers in Dahanu on Sunday to understand their grievances. Kunal Jeetendra Mali, 39, said, “We, the chikoo farmers, have to pay premium of Rs 18,000 per hectare, and we can claim Rs 27,000 per hectare if there is four consecutive days of 20 mm rain and five consecutive days of over 90 per cent of humidity. And we can claim Rs 60,000 if 20-mm rain persists for eight straight days and humidity stays above 90 per cent for 10 days in a row.” Mali said the possibility of claiming insurance is very low as the rain gauge and humidity metre are not rightly placed to read correct measurement, and some machines have also been stolen.
Chikoo growers Ajay Baphna and Kunal Mali show the spoilt fruits, on a farm, in Dahanu, on Sunday
“The insurance plan has been there for the past five to six years. But, we had been paying a premium of Rs 3,000 per hectare, per annum,” Sanjay Adhiya, another farmer, said, adding that this year they had to pay Rs 18,000 per hectare each year. Farmers said the premium of insurance under Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) was hiked by the state government this year. While the premium was increased, the sum insured and the conditions for making the claim were kept the same, Mali said.
Last year, farmers paid a premium of Rs 3,000 per hectare, and the state and central governments paid Rs 6,000 each, taking the total premium to Rs 15,000 — which is 25 per cent of the sum insured. But this year, in addition to farmers’, premiums from the state and central governments’ contributions increased, too, by Rs 25,500 and Rs 7,500, respectively. The total premium, Rs 51,000 per hectare, made up for 85 per cent of the sum insured, which was not increased along with the premiums this year.
One of the oldest generations of chikoo farmers in Dahanu, Ajay Baphna said, “There has been a longstanding demand for a research centre in the district to understand why this fruit is getting spoiled on the trees itself, but our requests have fallen on deaf ears of the state government. The fruits fall off before maturing, and we have been facing this issue for the past few years.”
A six-fold hike
A former professor at a private college, Farzan Mazda, said, “Dahanu had been declared an Ecologically Fragile Area in 1991 wherein no change in land use is permitted to date. With Chikoo farming becoming increasingly unviable and no scope for permissions for clean limited developments on the lands, farmers are bound to seek compensation from the government. If limited permission for clean development on the orchards be granted, this scenario won’t arise.”
Farmer Kunal Jeetendra Mali shows a chikoo tree
Another chikoo farmer, Ronnie Irani, shifted to the hospitality business after facing difficulties in farming. “But we still have a few chikoo trees and we are also suffering.”
Vinayak Bari, the president of Maharashtra Rajya Chikoo Utpadak Sangh, said, “Chikoo farming is spread across 8,000 hectares in Palghar, out of which 5,000 hectares is in Dahanu alone. At least 100 chikoo trees can be grown in 1 hectare of land.” “We have been helping boost the state’s economy. Then why doesn’t the government include the representatives of chikoo farmers while framing policy related to chikoo farming?” Bari asked.
Dahisar MLA and Dahanu resident Manisha Chaudhary said, “The premium has been hiked but the return remains the same. Chikoo farmers have been incurring heavy loss due to pollution. The state government has squeezed chikoo farmers to benefit insurance companies.”
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