For Indian farmers, one spell of drought, unseasonal rain, flood, hailstorm or a serious pest attack can put an entire season’s income at risk. Crop insurance is designed to reduce the financial shock when specified events damage an insured crop. In India, the main government-supported yield insurance programme is the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), alongside the Restructured Weather Based Crop Insurance Scheme (RWBCIS).
What Is Crop Insurance?
Crop insurance is financial protection for farmers against defined losses to notified crops. Depending on the scheme and policy, protection may relate to yield loss caused by natural risks, adverse weather, pests or diseases, prevented sowing, specified localised calamities and certain post-harvest events. The cover is not universal: the crop, area, season, insured risk and reporting conditions must match the notification and policy.
PMFBY: India’s Main Crop Insurance Scheme
Launched in February 2016, PMFBY aims to provide affordable insurance support to farmers growing notified crops in notified areas. It is implemented by participating State Governments and Union Territories with insurers selected for notified clusters. Farmers should check whether their crop and village or insurance unit are notified for the particular season before applying.
The programme has reached substantial scale. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare’s PIB backgrounder dated 29 August 2026, from Kharif 2016 through Rabi 2025–26, more than 92.46 crore farmer applications had been insured and over 26.33 crore farmer applications had received claims exceeding ₹2.06 lakh crore. The Union Budget 2026–27 allocated ₹12,200 crore for PMFBY. These are cumulative application figures, not a count of unique individual farmers.
What Risks Can Be Covered?
Prevented or failed sowing: Eligible farmers may receive cover when notified adverse conditions prevent sowing or planting across the notified area, subject to scheme conditions.
Standing crop losses: Specified non-preventable risks can include drought, dry spells, flood, inundation, cyclone, hailstorm, lightning, landslide, pests and diseases.
Localised calamities: Certain individual-farm losses caused by notified events such as hailstorm, landslide, inundation, cloudburst or natural fire may be assessed under applicable rules.
Post-harvest losses: Specified crops left in cut-and-spread condition for drying may receive limited protection against notified cyclonic or unseasonal rainfall events, generally for up to 14 days after harvest under scheme provisions.
Coverage details, eligible crops, insurance units and cut-off dates are notified season by season. Do not assume that every weather event or every stage of crop storage is covered.
How Much Premium Does a Farmer Pay?
Under PMFBY, the maximum farmer-paid premium rate is generally capped at 2% of the sum insured for Kharif foodgrain and oilseed crops, 1.5% for Rabi foodgrain and oilseed crops, and 5% for annual commercial and horticultural crops. The balance actuarial premium is subsidised by the Central and State Governments under the scheme’s prescribed sharing pattern. The actual amount payable depends on the notified crop, sum insured, season and state notification. Always check the premium shown for the specific crop and insurance unit.
Who Can Apply?
Farmers cultivating notified crops in a notified area and having an insurable interest may be eligible. PMFBY provides for both loanee and non-loanee farmers; participation is voluntary. Eligible tenant farmers and sharecroppers can also be covered where they meet the state’s documentary and land-cultivation requirements. Applicants may need land or tenancy records, sowing details, bank account information, identity documents and other documents specified by the state or insurer.
How to Enrol for Crop Insurance
Check the official PMFBY portal and your State Agriculture Department notification for the season, crop, insurance unit and last date.
Apply through the National Crop Insurance Portal, an authorised bank, Common Service Centre (CSC) or other notified channel.
Provide accurate land, crop, sowing and bank details; retain the application receipt and policy or acknowledgement number.
Verify that the premium has been paid or debited correctly and that the application status is accepted.
Keep copies of the notification, application, premium receipt and relevant farm records.
What Should a Farmer Do After Crop Damage?
Report a localised calamity or specified post-harvest loss within the deadline prescribed under the scheme—commonly within 72 hours of the occurrence—through the crop insurance helpline, insurer, bank, local agriculture office or the official reporting channel. Provide the policy or application number, affected crop, survey or land details, date and nature of damage, and photographs or other evidence where available. Follow the current season’s notification because reporting procedures and deadlines can vary by loss type.
For widespread yield loss, claims are generally assessed through the scheme’s notified area-yield methodology and crop-cutting or approved technology-based estimates, rather than a separate visit to every insured field. Weather-based insurance under RWBCIS uses specified weather parameters and triggers. A farmer should therefore understand which scheme and claim-assessment method applies to the policy purchased.
What Is Not Covered?
Crop insurance does not cover every cause of loss. Scheme exclusions can include preventable or avoidable risks, war and nuclear risks, riots, theft and events outside the notified crop, area, season or covered period. Losses caused by negligence or failure to follow required cultivation and reporting conditions may also affect eligibility. The exact exclusions must be checked in the current operational guidelines and state notification.
PMFBY and Weather-Based Crop Insurance: A Key Difference
PMFBY primarily provides yield-based protection for notified crops and areas. RWBCIS is based on defined weather parameters—such as rainfall, temperature, humidity or wind speed—and pre-set triggers. A weather-based claim may be calculated when the notified parameter crosses the specified threshold, even where individual field damage is difficult to measure. Neither scheme should be treated as a blanket guarantee against all farm income loss.
Why Crop Insurance Matters—and What Farmers Should Remember
Crop insurance can help stabilise farm finances after a covered shock, support the next sowing cycle and reduce the need to rely entirely on emergency borrowing. But it works best when farmers enrol correctly, understand the notified risks, report damage on time and keep documents ready. Premium rates, crop lists, enrolment deadlines and claim procedures can change by state and season, so rely on the latest official notification rather than an old deadline circulated online.
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