After unseasonal rain destroyed most of his paddy crop, a Wada farmer’s long wait for relief ended with just Rs 2.30 credited to his account under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
The amount deposited on October 31 left him shocked and disheartened. Madhukar Baburao Patil, a farmer from Shilottar village, had invested around Rs 80,000 cultivating paddy across seven acres. Unseasonal rain wiped out over 80 per cent of his crop, erasing potential earnings of nearly Rs 1.5 lakh.
Patil, who had paid a Rs 1500 insurance premium in July, said he felt cheated. “Our crops are gone. What are we supposed to do now? We are in a really bad condition. We request the company to compensate us for the loss,” said Patil.
“I can’t believe they’re calling this a system error. How can such a thing happen after an entire year?” Patil said in disbelief. “It’s an insult to farmers. I don’t even know when we’ll actually receive this year’s compensation. The insurance company is also blaming us — but what did we do wrong?” added Patil.
‘Technical fault’
The agriculture department later clarified that the Rs 2.30 deposit wasn’t this season’s payout but left over from an old claim. “This is a technical fault,” said Raju Tamboli, senior agriculture officer.
“The farmer had been sanctioned Rs 72,466 as compensation for crop losses in 2022–23. Of this, Rs 72,464 was transferred to his account on May 11, 2024, while the remaining Rs 2.30 got delayed due to a technical issue and was automatically credited after a system delay,” the officer said.
Tamboli added that Patil’s current claim for the losses in 2025 is still in process. “The crop-cutting experiment is in progress. Once completed, compensation will be calculated and released,” he said.
Preliminary data is expected by mid-November, but officials say final results could be delayed. Meanwhile, farmers in the region have demanded that the government and insurance firms fast-track compensation, saying technical excuses won’t help those already reeling from crop failures.
