Berhampur: Although the government has implemented livestock insurance to encourage farmers to insure cattle, lakhs of rupees are bungled in the veterinary offices here in Ganjam district.
With deadly diseases claiming thousands of cattle every year, the government had started the scheme to obviate financial difficulties of farmers. However, scores of poor farmers have failed to reap the benefits owing to apathy of officials and irregularities in veterinary offices.
According to reports, the state government launched the National Livestock Mission (NLM) in 2014 to cover farmers of all blocks and sub-division of the district under livestock insurance. All domestic animals including cow, ox, buffalo, goat and sheep were supposed to be covered under this insurance.
As per the scheme, the government had to bear 60 per cent of the premium for cattle insurance while the farmers would bear the rest. Later, the farmers would be compensated by the government if at all any of their cattle get killed in a natural calamity. Officials were asked to prepare reports of death of cattle due to flood, lightning, cyclone and cover the loss of farmers under the scheme.
If a cow is insured for Rs 20,000, the premium will be about Rs 360 out of which a farmer will have to pay only Rs 144 while the rest Rs 216 will be borne by the government. However, the famers are made to cough up more than Rs 200-300, reports said. Allegations of such ill-practices in veterinary offices came from farmers of Chhatrapur, Bhanjanagar, Berhampur and other areas in Ganjam district.
The famers also accused the officials of preparing insurance covers in the names of persons who did not own even a single cattle, raising doubts about the effective implementation of the scheme.
On several occasions, such matters have been brought to the notice of the chief district veterinary officer (CDVO), but to no avail. When contacted, CDVO Rabindra Mohan Maharatha admitted that he had got many such complaints. He said that he would bring the matter to the notice of senior officials and take necessary measures to end such malpractices. PNN
