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ICICI Lombard GIC is the first private sector General Insurance Company to be given mandate by the Government of Haryana for weather based crop insurance for farmers in Haryana

ICICI Lombard General Insurance, the private sector General Insurance Company, is the first private sector general insurance company to be given mandate for weather based crop insurance of wheat for farmers in Haryana. The scheme offers opportunity to cover losses caused by adverse weather conditions.

This weather based insurance of wheat has been taken up as a pilot project in Ambala II block of Ambala district. The Government of Haryana has made it mandatory for the farmers who have taken loans, to take this weather based insurance cover. The scheme covers risk of high temperature and excess rainfall which can affect the produce of wheat cultivators.

Under this scheme, of the total premium of Rs. 1158 per acre of land, government (Central Government and Govt. of Haryana) pays subsidy of Rs. 910 and the farmer has to pay only Rs. 248. At a premium amount of as low as Rs. 248 per acre, the farmer gets coverage of upto Rs. 15,000 per acre.

The claim settlement is a hassle-free process, as the beneficiary is not required to file a claim for loss to receive a payout. Instead ICICI Lombard will compensate the beneficiary at the end of the crop season for any deviations from the normal conditions on the basis of the certified data collected from independent third party bodies such as Indian Metrological Department (IMD) and National Collateral Management Services (NCMSL). This transparent and objective method of claim settlement, removes the need for carrying out field surveys.

Weather based crop insurance, which is an index based insurance product pioneered by ICICI Lombard in India in the year 2003-04, is now successfully running in14 states comprising of 64 districts covering as many as 26 variety of crops. ICICI Lombard has extended weather insurance benefits to more than 5 lakh farmers across India and insuring 14 lakh acres of land. In the loanee segment of farmers, particulary large area of land is covered under this scheme in 6 states of Karnataka, Rajasthan, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana. In 2009, ICICI Lombard received the 'Golden Peacock Eco-Innovation Award - 2009' for the technological innovation in the claim settlement process for weather insurance products.

According to Dilip Jashnani, Head - Financial Inclusion Solutions Group, ICICI Lombard GIC Ltd, "Wheat is the main Rabi crop of Haryana and it has not been brought under the umbrella of any crop insurance program so far in the state. We consider it to be our privilege to have been chosen to insure the crop against adverse weather conditions. For the convenience of the farmers, special care has been taken to incorporate a simple and transparent claim process".

Source: IndiaPRWire

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ICICI Lombard
written by rajul, September 08, 2010

will the weather crop project also be available in rajashtan?

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