Krishak Bandhu Prakalpa Scheme

The West Bengal Government has released a scheme that supports the cause of farmers and landless labourers in the State. Entitled as the Krishak Bandhu Scheme, it seeks to provide assured income and insurance benefits to the said beneficiaries and their dependents. This article explores the scheme in detail.

Scope of Assistance

As already seen, the Krishak Bandhu Scheme caters to the farming community by means of assured continuous income and insurance coverage. While the Krishak Bandhu Assured Income Scheme seeks to provide the farmers with a financial assistance of Rs. 10,000 per year (5,000 per acre in two instalments), a one-time grant of Rs. 2 lakhs would be provided to the dependents of the farmers under the Krishak Bandhu Death Benefit Scheme (for which the farmers need not pay any premiums). The scheme bears a resemblance to the Telangana Government’s flagship ‘Rythu Bandhu’ initiative. Note – the instalment of financial assistance would be disbursed during the season of Kharif and Rabi.

Eligibility

The Krishak Bandhu scheme has been introduced for the benefit of all the farmers based at the State of West Bengal, including Share Croppers (a tenant farmer who gives a part of each crop as rent). These farmers will be given Krishak Bandhu Cards, which could be used to apply for various benefits offered under the scheme. The grant of insurance on death benefit will be provided to the family member or nominee of the farmer or Share Cropper aged between 18-60 years.

Salient Features

The scheme is introduced with the object of helping poor farmers and labourers who are often deprived of sufficient crop production due to faulty farming practices.
The scheme provides all farmers with a financial aid of Rs. 10,000 on an annual basis, which is to be paid in two instalments. The sum of money will be rendered during the sowing of the Kharif crop and during the Rabi season.
The scheme facilitates the provision of an insurance policy to all formers and agricultural workers.
The monetary benefits will be directly transferred to the bank account of the respective beneficiary so that the assistance reaches out to the correct person. Moreover, such a practice abates the role of a middleman.

Application Process

Farmers of the State of West Bengal may avail the benefits of this scheme through the below-given procedure: Step 1 – The application process may be initiated by visiting the official website of the Agricultural Department of the West-Bengal State. Step 2 – In the home page of the website, the ‘Krishak Bandhu’ tab must be opted for. Step 3 – the user may now click on the ‘Sign In’ option. Step 4 – by clicking on the link suggested in the following page, the screen login window will be displayed on the screen. Step 5 – now, the signup option must be clicked on, after which the user will be directed to the online registration form. Step 6 – the form may be submitted after specifying the required details. The application form must be supported with the attachment of the essential documents. The registration would be complete after the applicant submits the form. The username and password will be sent to the candidates, through which they can log in to the scheme and access its features.