Speaker Om Birla asks Centre to form groups and brief MPs on crop insurance scheme

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Tuesday (March 17, 2026) asked the government to organise small groups of Members of Parliament (MPs) to brief them on the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Yojana so that that lawmakers gain a better understanding of the crop insurance programme.

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The suggestion came during Question Hour when Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan was responding to supplementary questions. Mr. Birla proposed that the government form groups of MPs and explain the provisions and functioning of the scheme in detail. The Minister immediately agreed to comply with the Speaker’s direction.

The crop insurance programme provides farmers with affordable insurance coverage against losses caused by natural calamities and other risks affecting crops.

In another supplementary, Mr. Chouhan said the government has also begun work on promoting integrated farming models to benefit farmers, particularly those with small landholdings, as fragmented land ownership makes it necessary to adopt models that combine different agricultural activities.

Integrated farming involves combining crops, livestock and other farm-based activities to improve productivity as well as income for farmers.

In response to another question, the Minister said the government is also encouraging alternative crops for tobacco growers, adding that crops such as sugarcane and others are being promoted as substitutes. He further noted that several crops are being procured from farmers at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) as part of the government’s efforts to support agricultural incomes.