Co-operative Banks Held Responsible for Data Errors; Directed to Disburse Claims to Affected Farmers
In a significant judgment, the Rajasthan High Court has ruled in favor of farmers whose insurance claims under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) were denied due to clerical errors committed by the Nagaur Central Cooperative Bank. The court, presided over by Justice Kuldeep Mathur, directed the bank to disburse the insurance claims along with applicable interest to the petitioners, holding that the responsibility for ensuring data accuracy lies with the bank and not the farmers.
The case involved a batch of writ petitions filed by farmers from the Kamediya area in Nagaur district, who suffered crop losses due to scanty rainfall during the Kharif 2020 season. Despite fulfilling all formalities for claiming insurance under PMFBY, their claims were rejected because the bank erroneously entered the wrong village name on the National Crop Insurance Portal (NCIP).
The court noted that the primary objective of the PMFBY is to provide financial support to farmers in the event of crop loss. Denial of claims due to clerical errors undermines the scheme's purpose. The court emphasized that farmers, who had no control over the data entry process, should not be penalized for errors committed by the bank officials.
The High Level Committee, constituted by the Ministry of Agriculture, had earlier directed the Co-operative Bank to settle the claims, recognizing the error as a result of inadvertence by the bank officials. However, the bank challenged the committee's orders, claiming its role was limited to acting as an intermediary.
Justice Mathur dismissed the bank's contention, stating that the revamped operational guidelines of the PMFBY clearly assign the responsibility of data correctness to the banks. The court reiterated that the bank cannot evade liability by blaming the Co-operative Society, especially when it had availed service charges for data entry under the scheme.
The court's decision underscores the importance of accountability in the implementation of welfare schemes and ensures that the objective of providing timely financial support to farmers is upheld. The Nagaur Central Co-operative Bank has been given eight weeks to comply with the court's order.
Bottom Line:
Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana - Farmers cannot be deprived of insurance claims under a welfare scheme due to clerical errors by implementing agencies - Responsibility lies with banks for correctness of data uploaded on the insurance portal.
Statutory provision(s): Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana guidelines, Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India.
Purna Ram v. Union of India, (Rajasthan) : Law Finder Doc id # 2854507
