'Crop Insurance Not Like Commercial Policy' : Supreme Court Affirms Direction To Insurer To Compensate Farmers For Harvesting Loss

The Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice U.U. Lalit and Justice Ravindra Bhat, on Monday, 5th September 2022, upheld the Bombay High Court's order directing Bajaj Allianz General Insurance to compensate, under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, 3,57,287 farmers in the Osmanabad District of Maharashtra for post harvesting losses caused to Soya bean Crop in the Kharif Season 2020. Lalit and Justice Ravindra Bhat, on Monday, 5th September 2022, upheld the Bombay High Court's order directing Bajaj Allianz General Insurance to compensate, under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, 3,57,287 farmers in the Osmanabad District of Maharashtra for post harvesting losses caused to Soya bean Crop in the Kharif Season 2020 on account of heavy rainfall. Bombay High Court's Order In the impugned order, the High Court noted that it is not in dispute that the Union of India had floated a scheme namely Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana 2020 which was applicable for three years; that the state of Maharashtra was implementing the said scheme and had issued Government Resolution dated 29th June, 2020 through the department of Agriculture. The High Court further observed that the insurance company did not dispute that there was a post harvesting loss for Soyabean crop in Kharip season 2020 due to heavy rain during the month of October 2020; that the insurance company however, has though cleared claims of large number of agriculturists, though made after 72 hours of the incident, did not pay the claims of large number of agriculturists including these petitioners on the ground that there was no intimation or complaint made by the agriculturists within 72 hours and thus they were not entitled for such benefit under the said scheme; that the insurance company also has not disputed that due to such heavy rainfall during the relevant period, the phone lines of the agriculturists were affected and it was not feasible to intimate the insurance company within a period of 72 hours, and that the said heavy rain fall continued for number of days.