Crops are a delegate to handle. They are like a raw egg, one blow and the crop may get damaged. India’s climate is rough and there also exists some places where land-surface swings its moods such places are also there where volcanic eruptions, droughts, flood are very frequent and very common. Agriculture in India is highly susceptible to risks like droughts and floods.
If it rains heavily, we use an umbrella to protect ourselves; if sun-intensity is heavy then we use goggles and protect our eyes from getting burned. How will a farmer protect its crop from the same natural calamity? Here we move our subject to the crop-insurance.
Agriculture is among one of the most profitable works/jobs/business as it has huge returns gained after a very short time but the risk behind such gains are also huge, imagine you are putting all your money in as open shelf every night in front of the world. in this world, you have to face sometimes, wild animals too and wild humans, suffering from a grave disease of greed and jealousy, too.
With millions of dollars as an investment for animal and crops, farmers risk themselves to get profits. Agriculture insurance puts the farmers on the safe side so that their investments remain safe. It is necessary to protect the farmers from natural calamities and ensure their credit eligibility for the next season. For this purpose, the Government of India introduced many agricultural schemes throughout the country, its importance is so wide that even many private companies are also providing farmers the insurance for their crop.
Why is it important for farmers to take agriculture insurance? Farmers who take insurance policies with small premiums protect their crops, livestock, farming and harvesting practices from setbacks. Is it so? Or something better is hidden behind the facts and words; is it the good or the worst which hides behind the curtain of facts.
It is a major step against poverty, now many questions arise how does it fight poverty when it just protects mere crops but really it is a fact that this form of insurance helps in fighting poverty. No natural disaster can be unpredicted.
Imagine, a heavy investment on a crop by a farmer, then think the most devastating-unpredicted-disaster takes the whole crop down. What will happen, farmers went bankrupt and so does the country. Why country? Disaster is not an unjust creature; it shows its effect to each and every one who comes in its way and one has to accept the fact that not everyone has enough will to opt the job of a farmer.
If the population of farmers gets low, the food available in the country becomes less and this country has to buy the food from other countries. Thus, trade deficit and hence ultimately a fall in the value of the currency of the country. If the farmer makes the insurance, the companies compensate them. With the money paid out, farmers are in place to reinvest in farming and other agricultural activities making them rich again.
With the farmer’s point of view if we analyze the use of insurance then it is easy to recover to losses if they secure their crops with crop-insurance. Agriculture is a very fine and is a very profit-causing business but it is expensive too. It can be understood as it demands a lot of inputs. For example:- good seeds, pesticides, soil etc. Also, a farmer has to work really hard to get a good crop. Hence it is risky too; Farmers can recoup such losses which they suffered these losses could be in crops, animals and farm inputs. By paying, the insurance premium which surely is affordable, farmer remains safe and recovers their losses.
A public faces huge rise in the price of crops which is the very result of the same cause, i.e. the farmer, if faces a loss, increases the rate of the crop; which ultimately causes the public to suffer. If public invests them some money to help farmers in their crop investment then probably the chances of grave exhaustion of a particular crop may get reduced.
How can a person sleep with comfort, with his money kept in an open shelf/locker in front of the world? a farmer does it every day, then we can imagine how he sleeps what might be his mind state while having even an afternoon nap. Their crops may get destroyed by huge number of possibilities, for example:- a wild-bull can easily destroy a well ripened crop; no disaster can be predicted, and if can be predicted then also what can be done to the sown gold (crop)? For such farmers, insurance for their crop is like a boon, they can have a peace full nap after doing insurance as the assurance of compensation from the company providing insurance packages provides the best relief; and what else is more valuable than peace?
Government and engineers are doing constant research for making new products which can provide convenience to our hardworking farmers but census-analyses explains that very little gadgets and instruments are sold or are brought be farmers.
This is due to a very big factor, i.e. a fear of investments. As described earlier the investment which a farmer made is big. He fears and avoid all the risk which may increase the loss. Agriculture insurance taken against the crops and livestock allow farm managers to open up for new technologies available in the market. Every year, new technologies take birth to help farmers, to help them making more produce from their investments.
Since the new investments are risky these are not even tried by farmers and thus, if agricultural insurance are taken into account then the farmers not only will get peace of mind but will get open to new technology which ultimately will increases the crop-yield and thus will reduce the cost of crop in market and also there will be an indirect effect on the prices of the products which are needed to make investments in agriculture.
by Pramey
