Rajasthan High Court - Jodhpur
Ghanshyam Daga & Ors vs State Of Rajasthan & Ors on 11 October, 2017
Author: Chief Justice
Bench: Chief Justice
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT
JODHPUR
D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 8464 / 2017
1. Ghanshyam Daga S/o Ram Kishan, aged 59 Years, C-88,
Dharam Narayan Ji Ka Hatta, Paota, Jodhpur. At present
residing at Village Bhainser Kotwali, Tehsil Tiwari, District
Jodhpur.
2. Surendra Kumar Bishnoi S/o Shri Jodhaji, aged about 67
years, R/o Hadetar, Tehsil Sanchore, District Jalore at
present residing at 2, Narsingh Colony, Opp. High Court
Colony, Jodhpur (Raj.)
3. Rugha Ram S/o Shri Bhanvaru Ram, aged about 56 years,
R/o 159, Kamediya Bas, Kalaru, Tehsil Merta, District Nagaur.
4. Jeevan Ram Bishnoi S/o Bheru Ram, aged about 68 years,
R/o Bishnoiyo Ka Bas, Khetolai, Jaisalmer (Raj.)
5. Ganpat Singh S/o Shri Narpat Singh, aged about 61 years,
R/o 180, AM Chouraha, Utavan, Tehsil Pali, District Pali.
----Petitioners
Versus
1. State of Rajasthan through Chief Secretary, Govt. of
Rajasthan, Government Secretariat, Jaipur.
2. The Principal Secretary, Agriculture Department, Jaipur.
3. The Director, Agriculture, Govt. of Rajasthan, Krishi Bhawan,
Jaipur.
4. Union of India through Cabinet Secretary, Department of
Agriculture Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, Krishi Bhawan,
New Delhi.
----Respondents
_____________________________________________________
For Petitioner(s) : Mr. Rajesh Joshi Senior Advocate assisted by
Mr. Harshit Bhurani.
Mr. Rohit Mutha.
For Respondent(s) : Mr. S.S. Ladrecha, Addl.Advocate General.
Mr. B.S.Sandhu.
_____________________________________________________
HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAMCHANDRA SINGH JHALA
Order (2 of 10) [CW-8464/2017] 11/10/2017
1. The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana was introduced by the Union of India, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
2. The objective of the Scheme was to provide insurance coverage and financial support to the farmers in the event of failure of any of the notified crop as a result of natural calamities, pests and diseases. The Scheme was to be implemented through a multi-agency framework by selecting insurance companies under the overall guidance and control of the Department of Agriculture, Cooperative and Farmers Welfare, Government of India and the concerned States. As per the Scheme all farmers growing notified crops in a notified area during a season who have insurable interest in the crop were eligible to the benefit under the Scheme. The Scheme was compulsory for farmers in the notified areas who possess a Crop Loan account i.e. were loanee farmers and to whom credit limit was sanctioned or renewed for the notified crop during the crop season. It was voluntary for other farmers.
3. As per para 9 of the Scheme the sum insured had to be equal to "Scale of Finance" for that crop as fixed by "District Level Technical Committee" (DLTC). Para 9 of the Scheme being relevant to be noted for adjudication of the present writ petition is noted. It reads as under:
"9. SUM INSURED/LIMIT OF COVERAGE:
In case of Loaneee farmers under Compulsory Component, the Sum Insured would be equal to Scale of Finance for that crop as fixed by District Level Technical Committee (DLTC) which may extend up to the value of the threshold yield of the insured crop at the option of insured farmer. Where value of the threshold (3 of 10) [CW-8464/2017] yield is lower than the Scale of Finance, higher amount shall be the Sum Insured. Multiplying the Notional Threshold Yield with the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of the current year arrives at the value of sum insured. Wherever Current year's MSP is not available, the MSP of previous year shall be adopted. The crops for which, MSP is not declared, farm gate price established by the marketing department/board shall be adopted.
Further, in case of Loanee farmers, the Insurance Charges payable by the farmers shall be financed by loan disbursing office of the Bank, and will be treated as additional component to the Scale of Finance for the purpose of obtaining loan.
For farmers covered on voluntary basis the sum-insured is upto the value of Threshold yield i.e. threshold yield x (MSP or gate price) of the insured crop."
4. As per para 14 of the Scheme a calender was fixed as per which by March and September each year, for the Kharif and Rabi seasons, insurance cover was to be notified i.e. Scale of Finance was determined.
5. It is pleaded in the writ petition that for the year 2016-17 the District Level Technical Committee (DLTC) was constituted in the State of Rajasthan, which had agreed to implement the Scheme which was notified by the Central Government, on account of the reason it is not compulsory for every State to adopt the Scheme. The reason being para 11 of the Scheme, which apportions sharing of the risk. The liability of the insurance companies is limited to 350% of total premium collected or 35% of the sum insured, whichever is higher. The remainder has to be equally contributed by the Central Government and the concerned State.
6. Accepting the Scheme for being implemented in the State of Rajasthan the various District Level Technical Committees were constituted and we focus on the DLTC constituted for the district of Jodhpur. Considering various parameters which govern (4 of 10) [CW-8464/2017] input in growing various crops such as requirement of water, fertilizer, wages to farm labour etc., the Committee recommended insurable interest per hectare as under:-
Sr. Name of Crop Presently prevalent Cropwise cost 2016-17 Prescribed cropwise criteria No. cropwise criteria (Hec.) received from (acre) adopted by the Agriculture Department. dated 13.02.2017 (Hectare) Bank.
Irrigate Unirrigated Irrigated Unirrigated Irrigated Area Unirrigated d Area Area Area Area Area
1. Wheat 13000- 32750 - 35000-37000 13500
2. Barley 10500- 26380 - 27000-28000 11000
3. Cholam 6500-7000 - 15905 16000-17000
4. Bajra 6500- 6000-6500 - 14925 20000-21000 16000-17000 7000
5. Mustard seeds 10000- 25170 - 27000-28000 10500
6. Tarameera 6000-6500 - 15045 16000-17000
7. Gram 8100-8500 - 20440 24000-25000 20000-22000
8. Groundnut 15000- 37690 - 40000-42000 15500
9. Cotton 16000- 40885 - 44000-45000 16500
10. Sesame 6000-6500 - 14520 15000-16000
11. Gwar 8500-9000 - 18510 20000-22000
12. Moong bean 6500-7000 - 16370 20000-22000
13. Moth 5500-6000 - 13230 18000-20000
14. Chilli 21000- 49510 50000-55000 22000
15. Onion 19000- 55000-56000 20000
16. Cumin 13500- 37620 - 40000-42000 14500
17. Garlic 13000- 55000-56000 14000
18. Pasture (Chara) 8500- 22000-25000 9500
19. Castor 13000- 30000-32000 (5 of 10) [CW-8464/2017] 14000
20. Cassia 4000-4500 10000-12000 (Sonamukhi)
21. Plantago 7500- 19680 - 20000-22000 (Isabgol) 8000
22. Fennel 7500- 22000-25000 8000
23. Vegetables 10500- 30000 11000
7. Similar exercises were conducted elsewhere and for different districts in the State of Rajasthan the DLTC recommended the insurable interest for different crops per hectares. Meaning thereby, the scale of finance crop-wise which was required to be determined as par para 9 of the Scheme was determined.
8. The first grievance in the writ petition relates to the decision taken by the State of Rajasthan while implementing the Scheme to reduce the scale of finance. The State Government has reduced the scale of finance substantially.
9. As per the counter affidavit filed by the State Government the Finance Department of the State of Rajasthan considered the scale of finance recommended by the District Level Committees in the 33 districts of the State of Rajasthan and noted wide disparity in the data collected as under:-
Crop Name BAJRA MUSTARD GUAR WHEAT
District 2015 2016 2015 2016 2015 2016 2015 2016
AJMER 40200 45000 30500 64400 64440
ALWAR 25500 28100 42800 47100 27900 30700 58500 64400
BANSWARA 40500 40500 27500 62500 70000
BARAN 35000 36750 41250 43413
(6 of 10)
[CW-8464/2017]
BHARATPUR 39875 43875 43750 53000 45000 52000 57500 59500
BARMER 18000 18000 20000 21000 22500 20500 33500 34000
BHILWARA 17500 30750 30000 27500 49500 45000
BIKANER 15000 15000 21500 26800 23000 26200 35000 45800
BUNDI 30000 30000 40000 40000 52500 52500
CHITTORGARH 30750 33750 49500 54500
JHUNJHUNU 27000 32000 35000 42000 29500 35000 48000 58000
DAUSA 23250 25575 30000 33000 26000 28600 43750 48125
DUNGARPUR 17500 21000 18000 21600 27500 33000
GANGANAGAR 36000 36000 48400 48400 42800 42800 61600 61600
HANUMANGA 29200 38800 38800 62800
RH
JALORE 16500 25500 21000 33500
JAISALMER 25250 25250 31750 31750 27500 27500 44000 44000
JHALAWAR 35000 35000 42500 42500
JODHPUR 17500 17500 26250 26250 32500 32500
KAROLI 32750 36000 42000 46250 39750 43750 62750 69000
KOTA 30000 31500 36250 38000
NAGAUR 24000 24000 26000 26000 23000 23000 36000 36000
PALI 22000 25000 30000 37500 25000 30000 43750 50000
PRATAPGARH 30750 33750 47500 54500
RAJSAMAND 30000 33000 28000 30000 47000 48000
JAIPUR 27500 30250 33250 36575 29000 31325 52500 55125
SIKAR 29250 29250 33250 33250 22750 22750 48000 48000
SIROHI 18000 18000 30000 30000 30000 30000 34000 35000
S. MADHO 32750 36000 42000 46250 39750 43750 62750 69000
TONK 25960 25960 33440 33440 28600 28600 44000 44000
UDAIPUR 30000 33000 28000 30000 47000 48000
DHOLPUR 39875 43875 43750 53000 45000 52000 57500 59500
CHURU 11200 13400 22000 25300 14800 17700 36000 41400
(7 of 10)
[CW-8464/2017]
10. To highlight, for Bajra, in the year 2015 for District Alwar the scale of finance recommended was ₹25,500/- and in district Churu it was ₹11,200/-.
11. In this regard the contention advanced by the learned Senior Counsel for the petitioners is short and simple. The contention is that the Scheme contemplates District Level Technical Committees to determine the scale of finance. The scale of finance would vary from district to district because there are many factors which influence the cost of producing a crop. There may be fertile area where the yield is more and barren area where the yield is less. In the State of Rajasthan there are extreme dry areas. There are areas where rain fall is plentiful. The farmers would require irrigation which in turn would require either electricity or diesel if irrigation is through a tube well. If the irrigation department is providing water the charges have to be paid. Therefore the Scheme contemplates District Level Technical Committees to be constituted and rate of scale of finance has to be fixed by the District Level Technical Committees. If a Scheme notifies a body for doing an act, the act has to be performed by that body and nobody else.
12. We concur with the argument advanced. The Scheme notifies District Level Technical Committees to be formed and the scale of finance recommended by the Committees has to be implemented. Should the State Government have any apprehension regarding the decision of the Committees, reasons for the apprehension can be noted and brought to the notice of (8 of 10) [CW-8464/2017] the Committees, requiring the Committee to re-look into the matter.
13. In the instant case we find, and we highlight this with reference to the District Jodhpur in the State of Rajasthan, that the State Level Technical Committee while determining the scale of finance took into account various factors i.e. sowing, weed control, harvesting, cost of seed, cost of indigenous compost, fertilizer cost, cost of electricity, yield per hectare and misc. expenses. Needless to state, variation would be on account of the yield. Now, land in a particular district may be more prone to the growth of weeds and less in the other. Similarly, yield in different district, depending upon the quality of the land, would be different. That apart, all varieties of crop cannot be grown uniformly across a State. For example, in some areas high priced basmati rice alone can be grown and in some low priced varieties of rice can be grown.
14. We find that the Union of India has supported the stand taken by the writ petitioners on this issue as per the counter affidavit filed.
15. For the current year, the dates of notifying the insurable interest for the Rabi and Kharif crops is over and thus as regards this aspect of the issue raised in the writ petition we issue a declaratory relief.
16. In future if the State of Rajasthan implements the Scheme in question in the State of Rajasthan the scale of finance for each crop adopted would be as fixed by the District Level Technical Committee and should the Finance Department of the (9 of 10) [CW-8464/2017] State of Rajasthan have any issue regarding price fixation, the Finance Department would not be entitled to unilaterally alter the rates. The reference would be made to the District Level Technical Committees. The decision on points of disagreement would be taken by the District Level Committees and final view by the District Level Technical Committee shall prevail.
17. This closes the first issue raised in the writ petition.
18. The second grievance is of not adhering to the calender fixed under the Scheme to notify the dates i.e. March and September for Kharif and Rabi seasons respectively.
19. There is merit in the said plea for the reason pertaining to the Kharif crop the dates were notified by the State of Rajasthan in the month of July 2017. The farmers could not avail the benefit of the insurance cover because nobody knew the rates. Unfortunately in the second week of July on account of heavy rains there was huge destruction of crop in the District of Jodhpur.
20 Learned counsel for the State draws attention that to mitigate the plight of the farmers ₹27 crores were disbursed by way of subsidy in the district of Jodhpur. That is irrelevant. If there is a notified Scheme by the Central Government and the State Government adopts the Scheme, the Scheme has to be implemented in toto.
21. Thus on the second issue raised we dispose of the petition directing that henceforth the calendar fixed under the Scheme for issuance of administrative instructions by Government of India, the conduct of State Level Coordination Committee on (10 of 10) [CW-8464/2017] Crops Insurance (SLCCCI) meeting to decide for notification of crops and notified areas, limits of sum insured etc., shall be strictly adhered to by the State of Rajasthan.
22. Only the aforenoted issues have been argued today and the same have been dealt with.
23. The writ petition is disposed of in terms of paras 16 and 21. (RAMCHANDRA SINGH JHALA)J. (PRADEEP NANDRAJOG)CJ. Parmar