Maharashtra: Probe Uncovers Fruit Crop Insurance Fraud in Palghar District | Representational Image
Palghar, Maharashtra: An alleged fruit crop insurance scam has been uncovered in Palghar district, with 19 farmers accused of fraudulently claiming insurance money by submitting false information. The farmers, from Palghar, Dahanu, Talasari, and Vikramgad talukas, are alleged to have cheated the government by misrepresenting details of their crops and land to secure insurance payouts.
This alleged fraud comes after similar schemes were uncovered in other districts like Beed, Satara, Sangli and Pune, prompting a statewide investigation ordered by the Agriculture Department in October 2024 to look into all fruit crop insurance claims. The probe in Palghar, conducted by insurance representatives, agricultural officers, board and other officials, scrutinized the information provided by farmers who had claimed insurance for the Mrig Bahar season.
The probe revealed that the 19 farmers had embezzled insurance funds by providing false information and misleading information. A detailed report outlining the discrepancies between the submitted and factual information has been sent to the state government for further action.
The farmers are accused of several types of fraud: insuring larger areas than they actually cultivated, falsely claiming fruit production on trees that were not yet bearing fruit, and insuring non-existent fruit crops altogether.
In Palghar and Dahanu talukas, the agriculture department found instances where no fruit crops existed on the insured land, yet insurance claims were filed and paid. There are suspicions that these farmers may have a history of submitting false information and receiving undue compensation.
Ten farmers in Palghar and Dahanu talukas are specifically accused of insuring land with no fruit crops and then fraudulently claiming compensation. In one instance, a Vikramgad farmer insured trees that hadn’t borne fruit for several years. Additionally, eight farmers in Palghar, Dahanu and Talasari talukas inflated their insured fruit crop area by a total of 6.64 hectares to secure larger insurance payouts.
The Agriculture Department has concluded its investigation into the 19 farmers, compiling a report after conducting a joint inspection. This report was submitted to the State Government for further action by the District Agriculture Superintendent’s Office on 28 November 2024. It remains to be seen what steps the state government will take in response to the fraudulent activities of these farmers, who are accused of defrauding the government with false and misleading information.
The scheme requires farmers to provide accurate information about their crops at Aaple Sarkar Seva Kendras or similar centers. These 19 farmers are alleged to have provided false information at these centers, enabling them to pay insurance premiums and then fraudulently collect compensation.
