Indian PM comes to rescue of distressed farmers hit by unseasonal rains

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday came to the rescue of distressed farmers hit by unseasonal rains and hailstorm by announcing higher compensation for crop damage and easing criteria for them to avail government support.

The prime minister told a local public function that he has also asked banks to restructure loans of affected farmers and instructed insurance companies to pro-actively settle their claims.

Modi said farmers would be eligible for input subsidy if 33 percent of their crop has been damaged against the prevailing norm.

According to the prevailing yardstick, the farmers are eligible for such subsidy over crop damage of 50 percent or more.

Modi said the input subsidy given to distressed farmers would be enhanced by 50 percent of the existing amounts.

Expressing concern over the problems faced by farmers due to abnormal weather conditions over the past year, the prime minister said helping farmers in such time of distress was the government's responsibility.

The government has sent teams of central ministers to affected areas to assess the extent of damage, he added.

The union and state governments, the banks and insurance companies would all do their utmost to provide relief to the farmers, said the prime minister.

Some parts of India, especially in the northern provinces, have been subject to abnormal weather phenomenon over the past one month like rains and storms, which have inflicted heavy losses to the farmers. Endi