Indian agriculture is dependent on the monsoon and a small deviation in seasons affects agriculture productivity significantly in all sub-continents within India. The Indian monsoon is directly affected by global climate change and experiences extreme weather conditions such as rainfall, heatwave, cold wave, and droughts. About four out of ten farmers depend on farming for their livelihood, whereas about 50% of farmers depend on monsoonal rain for irrigation. Farmers are left behind with nothing when natural calamities damage or destroy their crops. To reduce the risk and ensure farmers’ eligibility for the next season, the Government of India launched the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).
PMFBY is a crop insurance scheme for Indian farmers that have included all crops with a reduced premium for farmers. This agriinsurance scheme has increased awareness among farmers and increased the coverage of areas and crops. India’s government aims to bring around 50% of the Indian farmers into the crop insurance net. To achieve this, there is a need to deploy modern farming technologies that can speed up the processes involved in the agriinsurance claims. It is challenging but achievable using innovative methods and models of technology.
The government of India has set another goal of doubling farmer’s income by 2022. Crop insurance will play a crucial role in enabling farmers to gain returns by allowing farmers to mitigate their losses through the insurance. The rapid assessment of crop damage and verification of the damage can lead to a quick payout of farmers’ compensation. It is essential to develop the farming sector’s faith in crop insurance products and encouraging farmers to approach agriinsurance.
Modern farming technologies such as sensors, GPS and satellite imagery, drone mapping, and videos can help gain insights required in the process of agriinsurance. Satellite imagery supplements high-resolution images of smaller land segments providing high accuracy in estimating yields and losses. Site mapping and aerial visualizing can give inputs to assess losses of the individual farmers by analyzing the impact on the field and crops.
Though the government supports agriinsurance adoption as a protection against low yields, the delay in the assessment and compensations has dampened farmers’ adoption and satisfaction. The application of existing technology tools for agriinsurance can change this scenario. Thus, the agricultural sector needs to bring up the latest ideas and better technologies to enhance farmers’ economic well-being. It needs to leverage the technology to accelerate the pace of the agriinsurance sector.