Farmers right to livelihood

African countries are establishing plant variety protection regimes to incentivise investments in plant breeding and the development of crop varieties for the purpose of improving the productivity of basic food crops for smallholder farmers in the continent. However, the regimes, which are mostly modelled on the 1991 Act of the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV Convention) 1961, undermine the traditionally unrestricted farming practices of using, saving, selling and exchanging farm seeds and other propagating materials that constitute farmers' rights. Therefore, this paper assesses the suitability of adopting UPOV-style regimes in protecting crop varieties in Africa. Particularly, it critically analyses the potential impact of the UPOV-style regimes on farmers' rights and reflects on the broader implications for food security in Africa. It found that the system of plant variety protection obtainable under the UPOV-style regime challenges farmers' rights and ability to control food production and conserve and sustainably use plant genetic diversity in agriculture for diversified farming. This poses a threat to food security in Africa. It is, therefore, imperative to provide safeguards against the erosion of farmers' rights and for the protection of traditional knowledge and agricultural practices in Africa.

विश्व सम्पदा महासन्धी १९७२ र अमूर्त साँस्कृतिक सम्पदा महासन्धी २००३ को नेपाल पक्षराष्ट्र बनेको छ । विश्व सम्पदाले मानव निर्मित भौतिक वा मूर्त साँस्कृतिक सम्पदाहरु धरहराहरु, संग्रहालयहरु तथा स्मारकहरु, वास्तुकलाकृतिहरु, चित्रकला तथा मूर्तिकलाहरु; ऐतिहासिक भवनहरु, प्राकृतिक सम्पदाहरु आदि सरोकार पक्षहरुको प्रबद्र्धन, संरक्षण र पुर्खाको ज्ञान पुस्तान्तरणमा जोड दिन्छ भने अमूर्त साँस्कृतिक सम्पदाले अमूर्त साँस्कृतिक सम्पदाको संवाहकको रुपमा भाषा सहितका मौखिक परम्पराहरु तथा अभिव्यक्तिहरु; अभिनय कलाहरु; सामाजिक व्यवहारहरु, अनुष्ठानहरु र चाडपर्वका उत्सवहरु; प्रकृति तथा विश्वबम्हाण्डसँग सम्बन्धित ज्ञान तथा व्यवहारहरु र परम्परागत कलाकौशलहरु, पाकशिक्षा, योगा, ध्यान, दर्शन, जीवनोपयोगी शिक्षा र खेलकूदसँग जोडिएका मूल्यमान्यता, ज्ञान, सिप, कला, प्रविधि, नवपर्वतन सोच र सिद्धान्त, व्यवहारिक सामाजिक, आर्थिक, साँस्कृतिक, धार्मिक पक्षहरु, विश्वदृष्टिकोण, लोकवार्ता, समुदाय र अभ्यासकर्ता, दिगो विकास, उद्यमशीलता र जीविकोपार्जन, सम्पदा हस्तान्तरण, पुस्तान्तरण, प्रबद्र्धन र संरक्षणका कुराहरुमा जोड दिन्छ ।
संस्कृति समयकाल, राज्य व्यवस्था र नीति, समाज, विभिन्न परिवेश र वातावरण, मूल्यमान्यता र प्रचलित कानुनका आधारमा एउटा समाज र अर्को समाज, एउटा देश र अर्को देशभित्र भिन्नता पाइन्छ । यो निरन्तर परिवर्तनशील प्रकृया पनि हो । मानव जातिमा जन्मेदेखि नमरुञ्जेलसम्म जीवनभर निरन्तर सिकाइ चलिरहन्छ । पुस्तान्तरणका लागि विभिन्न विधालाई संस्कृतिमय शिक्षण, समुदाय र अभ्यासकर्ताको जीविकोपार्जन, उद्यमशीलता, पर्यटन र आर्थिक उपार्जन, दिगो विकास, सहअस्तित्व, दैनिक जीवनपद्धतिसँग जोड्न सक्दा विश्वमा शान्ति र एकता, विकास र समृद्धिका प्रवल सम्भावनाहरु छन् । संस्कृतिको दिगो विकास र पुस्ता हस्तान्तरण गर्नका लागि पनि यसलाई कक्षाकोठा, कलेज र विश्वविद्यालयको शिक्षामा अनिवार्य जोड्नु आवश्यक छ । पुस्तान्तरणको लागि सम्पदामय शिक्षण आजको अपरिहार्य पनि हो ।
शब्दकुञ्जी : भौतिक सम्पदा, अभौतिक सम्पदा, सम्पदामय शिक्षण, अभ्यासकर्ता, जीविकोपार्जन, सहअस्तित्व, प्रबद्र्धन, संरक्षण, हस्तान्तरण, पुस्तान्तरण ।

Concern for risks that stifle investment and contribute to vulnerability of the rural poor is a driving force behind various types of agricultural insurance. Insuring small-scale farmers against crop losses to adverse weather or other hazards has attracted public sector involvement in the provision of agricultural insurance in many countries among which Romania. With few exceptions, such interventions have encountered severe problems owing to high administrative costs, moral hazard, adverse selection etc. Government interventions should be aimed at improving the accessibility and quality of private sector insurance. This will require the establishment of a framework for responding to severe systemic events affecting agricultural production, and establishing an appropriate regulatory environment to foster private sector innovation and investment in services for less catastrophic events. Thus, in this item we tried to illustrate some elemental incident to appearances agricultural insu...

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) is a flagship scheme of the Government of India to provide insurance coverage and financial support to farmers in the event of failure of any of the notified crops, unsown area and damage to harvest produce as a result of natural calamities, pests and diseases to stabilise the income of farmers, and to encourage them to adopt modern agricultural practices. The scheme is a considerable improvement over all previous insurance schemes in India and is heavily subsidised by the state and central governments. The scheme aims to cover 50 percent of the farming households within next 3 years. During its implementation in the last one season, several challenges relating to enrolment, yield estimation, loss assessment, and claim settlement were reported by farmers, insurance companies as well as the state governments. It was also noted that several technological opportunities existed for possibly leveraging support to the Indian crop insurance program ...

Insurance is an arrangement that is designed to mitigate the effect of loss, injury or damage resulting from the occurrence of the hazard insured against or covered by the insurance policy. The essence of insurance is to reduce the fear of loss and to encourage people to carry on with their businesses and venture into their desired endeavors without fear of total loss. The subjectmatter of insurance is quite wide and the risks insured against or usually covered under insurance policies are also wide. Agricultural crop insurance is designed to encourage farmers to invest in agriculture without fear of total loss that may arise from damage or destruction of their crop by pests, insects, erosion, flood, drought, fire, man or animal incursion into their farmlands, etc. The question that begs for answer then is why do most farmers in Nigeria and in many parts of the world fail to take advantage of the agricultural crop insurance scheme?. It has been discovered that factors such as lack of awareness, ignorance, inability to pay premium, fear of not being indemnified in appropriate circumstances and general apathy on the part of most farmers accounts for the low rate of subscription to agricultural crop insurance scheme. The main objective of this paper is among other things, to highlight the importance of agricultural crop insurance to farmers and to recommend effective ways by which farmers can be encouraged to embrace crop insurance scheme. This exercise will also enlighten and educate crop farmers, prospective agriculturists, researchers, educationists and members of the general public on the significance and utilitarian value of taking up an insurance policy or insurance cover for agricultural crop production. Doctrinal approach of research is adopted in this work, basically relying on the primary and secondary sources of data from relevant sources such as statutes, textbooks, and online publications. It is recommended that very effective means of advertising, publicizing, and educating farmers on the importance of agricultural crop

Agriculture which is an important sector of economy is considered widely as an industry. It faces various types of natural hazards. Insurance is an important instrument to give protections under risky activities and that plays significant role in the agricultural production decision, chemical use decision, cultivation practices and cropping pattern decisions. Crop insurance is an important measure/instrument used by farmers for mitigating the financial losses due to various types of natural calamities/risks which damage and destruct the production. It is also one of the important instruments that can be used by a farmer to stabilize his income against partial or complete crop failure due to adverse weather [such as disasters, flood, hail, drought etc.] or due to related adverse physical crop conditions which are beyond his control. Before the introduction of crop insurance farmers took crop loan from the different financial institutions, that is, from different formal credit institutions such cooperative credit institutions, regional rural banks and commercial banks. So they became loanee farmers. There were no crop insurance facilities. In that case if the crops were damaged by natural calamities, there was no chance of getting or receiving indemnity from the insurer. After crop damage they were bounded in debt trap. After the introduction of crop insurance scheme (the Comprehensive Crop Insurance Scheme (CCIS) was introduced in Indian agriculture from 1 st April 1985 over all India and the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (NAIS) or Rashtriya Krishi Bima Yojana (RKBJ) has been running well for the session 2000-2001 with the active assistance and agreement of the West Bengal Government (W.B Govt.) in the state of West Bengal) all the loanee farmers are compulsorily insured and get the benefits of crop insurance after crop damages due to natural calamities. The National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (NAIS) pays the indemnity to the affected farmers by its own indemnity paid rule.

This article briefly traces the origins of agroecology in Latin America, and its application by nongovernmental organizations in rural development, its evolution and contributions in academia, and its adoption and dissemination by social rural movements.

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) is a flagship scheme of the Government of India to provide insurance coverage and financial support to farmers in the event of failure of any of the notified crops, unsown area and damage to harvest produce as a result of natural calamities, pests and diseases to stabilise the income of farmers, and to encourage them to adopt modern agricultural practices. The scheme is a considerable improvement over all previous insurance schemes in India and is heavily subsidised by the state and central governments. The scheme aims to cover 50 percent of the farming households within next 3 years. During its implementation in the last one season, several challenges relating to enrolment, yield estimation, loss assessment, and claim settlement were reported by farmers, insurance companies as well as the state governments. It was also noted that several technological opportunities existed for possibly leveraging support to the Indian crop insurance program ...

This working paper discusses the dependence of Indian agriculture on uncertain rains. In addition the farmers experience other production risks as well as marketing risks related to different crop enterprises and for different agro-climatic regions and areas. It then argues on the need for crop insurance as an alternative to manage production risk. It then takes up the historical overview of crop insurance products and their performance. It is followed by the discussion on the currently available crop insurance products for specific crops and regions. It discusses at length the two important products, namely, National Agricultural Insurance Scheme and Weather Based Insurance Scheme. It also reflects on some deficiencies in these products.

Climate change continues to pose a constant threat to nature and human beings, and thus demands adaptability and flexibility in forestry and domestic land use management. In this context, the Reducing Emission from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) project was introduced to harness forests to curb greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to combat climate change. As of 2020, REDD+ was implemented in 65 countries across the world, including Vietnam. While the missions of afforestation and forest protection cannot be accomplished without the aid of local residents, low participation from stakeholders, particularly poor farmers, is an obstacle in climate mitigation projects. To contribute to improving REDD+ with a useful Vietnam reference, this study uses a random sample approach coupled with a face-to-face interview method to survey 215 households in Chau Thai, one of 206 poor communes in Nghe An province, to learn about (1) residents’ perception towards the importance of fore...

Climate change is a pressing global issue and it negatively affects many developing countries, including Vietnam. To help Vietnam effectively respond to this pressing challenge, the country has recently introduced a major program for reducing carbon emissions arising from deforestation and forest degradation, fostering conservation, managing forests sustainably, and enhancing forest carbon stocks (REDD+). Current policies in Vietnam provide a sound platform for the development of REDD+, and REDD+ can potentially greatly contribute to the reduction of deforestation and forest degradation. However, these policies and the REDD+ program are hindered by limited understanding of the extent of deforestation and forest degradation and their underlying causes. This study employed geographic information system (GIS) tools, a structural regression model (structural model), and a regression tree method to quantify the extent as well as the approximate causes of deforestation and forest degradation in Vietnam. Results show that around 1.77 and 0.65 million ha of forests were lost and degraded, respectively, between 2000 and 2010. Deforestation and forest degradation were most notable in the north central, northeast, central highland, and northwest areas of the nation. There were several underlying indicators of deforestation and forest degradation including initial forest cover, per capita income, agricultural production, governance, population growth, food, and poverty. Our results illustrate several important policy implications for forest restoration and the REDD+ program in Vietnam: Vietnam should focus most strongly on reducing poverty, preserving existing forests, improving provincial-level governance, and controlling population growth.

Climate change continues to pose a constant threat to nature and human beings, and thus demands adaptability and flexibility in forestry and domestic land use management. In this context, the Reducing Emission from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) project was introduced to harness forests to curb greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to combat climate change. As of 2020, REDD+ was implemented in 65 countries across the world, including Vietnam. While the missions of afforestation and forest protection cannot be accomplished without the aid of local residents, low participation from stakeholders, particularly poor farmers, is an obstacle in climate mitigation projects. To contribute to improving REDD+ with a useful Vietnam reference, this study uses a random sample approach coupled with a face-to-face interview method to survey 215 households in Chau Thai, one of 206 poor communes in Nghe An province, to learn about (1) residents’ perception towards the importance of fore...

Climate change is a pressing global issue and it negatively affects many developing countries, including Vietnam. To help Vietnam effectively respond to this pressing challenge, the country has recently introduced a major program for reducing carbon emissions arising from deforestation and forest degradation, fostering conservation, managing forests sustainably, and enhancing forest carbon stocks (REDD+). Current policies in Vietnam provide a sound platform for the development of REDD+, and REDD+ can potentially greatly contribute to the reduction of deforestation and forest degradation. However, these policies and the REDD+ program are hindered by limited understanding of the extent of deforestation and forest degradation and their underlying causes. This study employed geographic information system (GIS) tools, a structural regression model (structural model), and a regression tree method to quantify the extent as well as the approximate causes of deforestation and forest degradation in Vietnam. Results show that around 1.77 and 0.65 million ha of forests were lost and degraded, respectively, between 2000 and 2010. Deforestation and forest degradation were most notable in the north central, northeast, central highland, and northwest areas of the nation. There were several underlying indicators of deforestation and forest degradation including initial forest cover, per capita income, agricultural production, governance, population growth, food, and poverty. Our results illustrate several important policy implications for forest restoration and the REDD+ program in Vietnam: Vietnam should focus most strongly on reducing poverty, preserving existing forests, improving provincial-level governance, and controlling population growth.

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) is a flagship scheme of the Government of India to provide insurance coverage and financial support to farmers in the event of failure of any of the notified crops, unsown area and damage to harvest produce as a result of natural calamities, pests and diseases to stabilise the income of farmers, and to encourage them to adopt modern agricultural practices. The scheme is a considerable improvement over all previous insurance schemes in India and is heavily subsidised by the state and central governments. The scheme aims to cover 50 percent of the farming households within next 3 years. During its implementation in the last one season, several challenges relating to enrolment, yield estimation, loss assessment, and claim settlement were reported by farmers, insurance companies as well as the state governments. It was also noted that several technological opportunities existed for possibly leveraging support to the Indian crop insurance program ...

a The Right Livelihood College campus Austral. b Escuela de Graduados, Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Administrativas, Universidad Austral de Chile. Casilla 567, Valdivia, Chile. c Instituto de Ciencias Ambientales y Evolutivas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Austral de Chile. Casilla 567, Valdivia, Chile. d Instituto de Ciencias Agronómicas y Veterinarias, Universidad de O’Higgins. Av. Libertador Bernardo O’Higgins 611, Rancagua, Chile.

Crop insurance schemes have failed to address the insecurities of the farmers and risk in agricultural production. It is indeed a matter of concern that even after a decade of the implementation of crop insurance schemes in Assam; the farmers are yet to reap the benefits from the scheme. The present study aims to address the adaptability constraints faced by the farmers under MNAIS. In this study with the participation of the insured and uninsured farmers, attempts have been made to find out some key factors that influence the participation of the farmers of Kamrup (R) and Dhubri district in adopting the crop insurance scheme. LOGIT model was used in the study. The level of education, income and distance from financial institutions were some of the important variable that has an impact on purchase of insurance. Probability of insurance was significantly higher for those who have access to non farm income. Expeditious settlement, crop cutting experiments, lack of cooperation from the officials, insurance units and insurance illiteracy were some of the major problems faced by the farmers in MNAI scheme.  Index Terms-crop insurance, MNAIS, factors influencing crop insurance participation

This research paper is written as a University Project by Ankush. a student of B.A. LL.B. (HONS.), School of Law, Lovely Professional University (Jalandhar, India). It discusses Right to Life with respect to Indian perspective in a very simplified and easily understandable manner.

Climate change is a pressing global issue and it negatively affects many developing countries, including Vietnam. To help Vietnam effectively respond to this pressing challenge, the country has recently introduced a major program for reducing carbon emissions arising from deforestation and forest degradation, fostering conservation, managing forests sustainably, and enhancing forest carbon stocks (REDD+). Current policies in Vietnam provide a sound platform for the development of REDD+, and REDD+ can potentially greatly contribute to the reduction of deforestation and forest degradation. However, these policies and the REDD+ program are hindered by limited understanding of the extent of deforestation and forest degradation and their underlying causes. This study employed geographic information system (GIS) tools, a structural regression model (structural model), and a regression tree method to quantify the extent as well as the approximate causes of deforestation and forest degradation in Vietnam. Results show that around 1.77 and 0.65 million ha of forests were lost and degraded, respectively, between 2000 and 2010. Deforestation and forest degradation were most notable in the north central, northeast, central highland, and northwest areas of the nation. There were several underlying indicators of deforestation and forest degradation including initial forest cover, per capita income, agricultural production, governance, population growth, food, and poverty. Our results illustrate several important policy implications for forest restoration and the REDD+ program in Vietnam: Vietnam should focus most strongly on reducing poverty, preserving existing forests, improving provincial-level governance, and controlling population growth.

ABSTRACT: An adequate supply of fresh, high quality and accessible vegetables is essential for a healthy food system. In Latin America, these are mostly produced by smallholder farmers. The objective of this research was to characterize the productive and commercial development of small-scale vegetable growers and to further understand and explain their attitudes on their business. A total of 335 farmers in Central Chile area were surveyed. The data was processed using descriptive and multivariate techniques. Results showed that farmers have a positive self-assessment of their technical performance, production quality and the contribution of farming to their household income. They express uncertainty about the future, as well as some disappointment with the prices they receive for their produce and their access to public support programs. There are significant differences between farmers within the sample; however, which allow two distinct clusters to be identified: “conformist” (69...

An evaluation of the crop insurance programme in India through the multi-peril yieldbased National Agricultural Insurance Scheme reveals that while it has done well on equity grounds, the coverage and indemnity payments are biased towards a few regions and crops, and there are delays in settlement of claims. And while the emergence of weather-based insurance as an alternative has addressed several limitations of traditional insurance, it is faced by challenges of a different kind. Both these forms of insurance must thus be looked upon as complementary to each other in order to evolve an efficient mechanism for dealing with natural disaster risks in agriculture. Weather variability and uncertainty of crop yields is a basic risk faced by agriculturalists worldwide. However, the magnitude and intensity of this is particularly high in India owing to extreme dependence of the farm sector on weather conditions and the poor economic condition of the overwhelming majority of farmers who hav...

Crop insurance schemes have failed to address the insecurities of the farmers and risk in agricultural production. It is indeed a matter of concern that even after a decade of the implementation of crop insurance schemes in Assam; the farmers are yet to reap the benefits from the scheme. The present study aims to address the adaptability constraints faced by the farmers under MNAIS. In this study with the participation of the insured and uninsured farmers, attempts have been made to find out some key factors that influence the participation of the farmers of Kamrup (R) and Dhubri district in adopting the crop insurance scheme. LOGIT model was used in the study. The level of education, income and distance from financial institutions were some of the important variable that has an impact on purchase of insurance. Probability of insurance was significantly higher for those who have access to non farm income. Expeditious settlement, crop cutting experiments, lack of cooperation from the officials, insurance units and insurance illiteracy were some of the major problems faced by the farmers in MNAI scheme.  Index Terms-crop insurance, MNAIS, factors influencing crop insurance participation

A review of the development of crop insurances in India show crop insurances has achieved a penetration of about 25 per cent among the approximately 12.5 million farmers in India. While this figure is impressive considering that the NAIS was introduced in 1983, much remains to be achieved. Of the 12.5 million farmers, about five million farmers are loanees and of these about 2.5 million are insured. This paper suggests that the remaining 10 million can easily be covered provided the funds that are periodically spent on agricultural debt waivers are routed through the India’s crop insurance mechanism. By doing this not only the debt waiver funds will be uniformally spend among all farmers but such disbursement will enhanced the creditworthiness of farmers and help to enhance the flow of organized credit to agriculture. The paper has also suggested same technological interventions to trigger partial claim payments to farmers immediately after the cropping season.

Farmers are in the scourge of an agrarian crisis. The major risk mitigation tool available for farmers is ‘crop insurance’. Unfortunately the concept of crop insurance has been a failure in India as in the year of peak performance of a crop insurance scheme (PMFBY) only around 35 per cent of the total arable land area is insured. Results from the study in Karnataka shows that less than 50 per cent of economic loss of farmers was compensated by PMFBY. Regression analysis indicated that claim payment had a significant impact on farmers’ coverage but claim payment has been faulty. Thus to improve the crop insurance products of India, review of crop insurance products of USA, China and Philippines were done. Taking insights from these a revenue based crop insurance model has been suggested as in USA to cover both the shortfalls in crop yield and price to increase the welfare of Indian farmers.

Agriculture insurance is most common forms of risk transfer in agriculture. It is often compulsory for borrowers of agricultural loans in low and middle income countries. This study tries to find out the status of compulsory agriculture insurance in Nepal and its sustainability through answering question “are compulsory agriculture insurance programs making agricultural insurance sustainable? Or we have to think differently for its sustainability. Household survey were conducted using pre-tested semi structured questionnaire in eight districts. Altogether 377 insurer farmers (132 crop and 245 livestock farmers) were selected from the list of target population using simple random sampling technique. Similarly, five cases were selected from the study districts. Result shows that Government of Nepal (GoN) has developed both cost of production and value based insurance products based on farmers demand. Basically, premium rate is fixed as five percent to cost of production based and seve...

Agriculture insurance is most common forms of risk transfer in agriculture. It is often compulsory for borrowers of agricultural loans in low and middle income countries. This study tries to find out the status of compulsory agriculture insurance in Nepal and its sustainability through answering question “are compulsory agriculture insurance programs making agricultural insurance sustainable? Or we have to think differently for its sustainability. Household survey were conducted using pre-tested semi structured questionnaire in eight districts. Altogether 377 insurer farmers (132 crop and 245 livestock farmers) were selected from the list of target population using simple random sampling technique. Similarly, five cases were selected from the study districts. Result shows that Government of Nepal (GoN) has developed both cost of production and value based insurance products based on farmers demand. Basically, premium rate is fixed as five percent to cost of production based and seve...

Agriculture insurance is most common forms of risk transfer in agriculture. It is often compulsory for borrowers of agricultural loans in low and middle income countries. This study tries to find out the status of compulsory agriculture insurance in Nepal and its sustainability through answering question “are compulsory agriculture insurance programs making agricultural insurance sustainable? Or we have to think differently for its sustainability. Household survey were conducted using pre-tested semi structured questionnaire in eight districts. Altogether 377 insurer farmers (132 crop and 245 livestock farmers) were selected from the list of target population using simple random sampling technique. Similarly, five cases were selected from the study districts. Result shows that Government of Nepal (GoN) has developed both cost of production and value based insurance products based on farmers demand. Basically, premium rate is fixed as five percent to cost of production based and seve...

Historically, agriculture has been subjected to various types of risks and uncertainties, which cause a major concern for producers and ultimately consumers. Farmers face a variety of risks such as production risk or yield risk, market risk or price risk, institutional risk, financial and credit risk and personal risk, to name a few. Being the mainstay of most of the developing economies around the world, agricultural risk possesses considerable threat to the income and general price stability of those countries. Insurance is the mechanism to manage agricultural risk particularly to safeguard farm income losses under adverse weather conditions and similar events beyond the control of primary producers. Continuous efforts are in progress around the developing countries to manage the agricultural risks through implementation of various types of insurance products. However, global experiences on promotion and implementation of agricultural insurance indicates mixed results (success and...

in 1975, provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition. IFPRI's strategic research aims to foster a climate-resilient and sustainable food supply; promote healthy diets and nutrition for all; build inclusive and efficient markets, trade systems, and food industries; transform agricultural and rural economies; and strengthen institutions and governance. Gender is integrated in all the institute's work. Partnerships, communications, capacity strengthening, and data and knowledge management are essential components to translate IFPRI's research from action to impact. The institute's regional and country programs play a critical role in responding to demand for food policy research and in delivering holistic support for country-led development. IFPRI collaborates with partners around the world.

Global insurance markets are vast and diverse, and may offer many opportunities for remote sensing. To date, however, few operational applications of remote sensing for insurance exist. Papers claiming potential application of remote sensing typically stress the technical possibilities, without considering its contribution to customer value for the insured

Phát triển ngành nông nghiệp công nghệ cao là xu thế tất yếu của sản xuất nông nghiệp Việt Nam nói chung và của tỉnh Thái Nguyên nói riêng. Thái Nguyên là tỉnh trung tâm của vùng Trung du và Miền núi phía Bắc, có điều kiện tự nhiên và tài nguyên thiên nhiên phong phú để phát triển kinh tế, đặc biệt là phát triển ngành nông nghiệp. Tuy nhiên, để ngành này phát triển bền vững, ngoài tiến bộ khoa học công nghệ thì nguồn nhân lực đủ khả năng ứng dụng thành tựu khoa học công nghệ vào sản xuất nông nghiệp là một yếu tố quan trọng. Bài viết đánh giá chung về thực trạng nguồn nhân lực ở Thái Nguyên và đề xuất một số giải pháp để tăng số lượng và nâng cao chất lượng nguồn nhân lực hướng tới phát triển nông nghiệp công nghệ cao.

The study analyzed the physical and financial performance of a new crop insurance scheme namely Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) in H-K region.The study revealed that the coverage of farmers under PMFBY increased by 8 per cent and area insured decreased by 3.72 per cent between kharif 2015 and kharif 2016 in Karnataka. Overall, the performance of PMFBY in Karnataka during the year 2016-17 revealed that there was an increase of 77.20 per cent in number of farmers insured and an increase in area insured by around 65 per cent from 2015-16 to 2016-17. Further, there was an increase of around 41 per cent in farmers insured and around 50 per cent in area insured from kharif 2016 to kharif 2017 in Karnataka.

z' esfdgf pv' g] kfnsf] t/fO{ If] qsf] Ps k| d' v gub] afnLsf] ?kdf /x] sf] 5 . g] kfnsf] s[ lif If] qsf] s" n ufx{ :y pTkfbg dWo] sl/a b' O{ k| ltzt lx:;f cf] u6\ g] pv' afnLsf] ljz] if cfly{ s tyf ;f+ :s[ lts dxTj /xF b} cfPsf] 5 . g] kfn ;/sf/n] pv' afnLnfO{ k| d' v cf} Bf] lus afnLsf] ?kdf k| fyldstfdf /fvL ljutb] lv g} dxTjsf ;fy ljleGg sfo{ qmdx? ;~rfng ub} { cfPsf] 5 . g] kfndf lrgL pTkfbgsf] nflu Psdfq sRrf kbfy{ sf] ?kdf k| of] u x' g] pv' sf] pTkfbgdf k| b] z g+ = !, k| b] z g+ = @, k| b] z g+ = % / ;' b' /klZrd k| b] zsf] of] ubfg ljz] if /x] sf] 5 . s[ lif tyf kz' kG5L ljsf; dGqfnon] lrgLsf] pRr k| ltnJwtf k| ltzt ePsf hftx?sf] ljsf;, pGgt k| ljlwx?sf] lj:tf/, d' gfkmf ;lxtsf] pv' sf] d" Nosf] ;' lglZrttf, Go" gtd vl/b d" No lgwf{ /0f / u' 0f:t/Lo pTkfbg ;fdu| Lsf] pknJwtfsf] ;' lglZrttf u/fO{ pRr pTkfbsTj ;lxt pv' sf] Joj;flos pTkfbg u/fpg lg/Gt/ k| of; u/] sf] 5 . g] kfn ;/sf/n] pv' s[ ifsx?nfO{ k| f] T;fxg ug] { p2] Zo ;lxt cf=j= @)&$÷&% b] lv :jb] zL lrgL pBf] unfO{ laqmL ug] { pv' s[ ifsx?nfO{ gub cg' bfg ;d] t pknAw u/fpF b} cfPsf] 5 . pv' afnL tyf o;;F u ;DalGwt pBf] usf] ljsf;sf nflu g] kfn ;/sf/n] ljleGg ;dodf kxnsbdL lnPsf] ;a} nfO{ ljlwt} 5 . o;sf afah' b klg o; afnL;F u ;DalGwt s] xL ;d:ofx? cem} klg 68\ sf/f] ?kdf ljBdfg 5g\ . o;sf] ;Gbe{ ulxl/P/ a' ‰gsf] nflu oyfy{ cj:yfsf] hfgsf/L ;a} dfem kl:sg] p2] Zon] s[ lif tyf kz' kG5L ljsf; dGqfnosf] s[ lif ljsf; dxfzfvf cGtu{ t s[ lif pTkfbsTj zfvfn] aeg] kfndf pv' v] tLM jt{ dfg cj:yf tyf ;DefjgfAE ljifos k' l:tsf k| sfzg u/] sf] df cToGt} v' zL nfu] sf] 5 . o; k' l:tsfn] g] kfndf pv' If] qsf] ljsf; / o; afnLdf rf;f] /fVg' x' g] ;+ 3÷;+ :yf, cg' ;Gwfgstf{ / gLlt lgdf{ tfx?nfO{ ljz] if ;xof] u k' ¥ofpg] ck] Iff /fVb5' . ;fy} o; k' l:tsf n] vg tyf k| sfzgdf dxTjk" 0f{ e" ldsf v] Ng' x' g] s[ lif pTkfbsTj Joj:yfkg zfvf / ;DalGwt dxfzfvf k| d' vnfO{ xflb{ s wGojfb lbg rfxG5' . /fh] Gb| k| ;fb ef/L ;lrj h] i7, @)&& s[ lif tyf kz' kG5L ljsf; dGqfno g] kfn ;/sf/ s[ lif tyf kz' kG5L ljsf; dGqfno z' esfdgf g] kfnsf] t/fO{ If] qsf s[ ifsx?n] /f] huf/L / cfosf] l;h{ gf ug] { Ps k| d' v cf} Bf] lus afnLsf] ?kdf pv' sf] v] tL ub} { cfpg' ePsf] 5 . sl/a Ps nfv s[ ifsx? k| ToIf ?kdf ;+ nUg /x] sf] cg' dfg ul/Psf] of] If] qn] t/fO{ sf s[ ifsx?sf] hLjg:t/ ;' wf/ ug{ sf] nflu 7" nf] ;+ efjgf af] s] sf] 5 . g] kfnsf] cfGtl/s pTkfbgn] sl/a ^) b] lv &) k| ltzt lrgLsf] dfu k" lt{ ul//x] sf] jt{ dfg cj:yfdf pv' sf] pTkfbg j[ l4 u/L :jb] zL pBf] ux?nfO{ k" 0f{ Ifdtfdf ;~rfng ug{ ;s] sf] v08df b] z lrgLdf cfTdlge{ / x' g ;Sg] alnof] ;Defjgf /x] sf] 5 . pv' afnL k| j4{ gsf] nflu g] kfn ;/sf/n] s[ lif tyf kz' kG5L ljsf; dGqfno / dftxtsf lgsfox?dfkm{ t cg' ;Gwfg / ljsf; ;DaGwL ljleGg sfo{ qmdx? ;~rfng ub} { cfO{ /x] sf] 5 . g] kfndf pv' v] tL k| j4{ gsf] nflu xfn;Dd ePsf k| of;x?, gLltut Joj:yf, pv' v] tLsf] jt{ dfg cj:yf, cGt/f{ li6« o kl/j] z;F usf] t' ngfTds cWoog / o; afnLsf] ;+ efjgf Pjd\ r' gf} tLx?sf] ;DaGwdf ;3g cWoog u/L s[ lif pTkfbsTj Joj:yfkg zfvfn] o; k' :ts k| sfzg u/] sf] df cToGt} v' ;L nfu] sf] 5 . o; k' :ts n] vgdf ljz] if e" ldsf lgjf{ x ug' { x' g] o; dGqfnosf jl/i7 afnL ljsf; clws[ t, >L ef] h/fh ;fksf] 6f Pjd\ jfujfgL ljsf; clws[ t, >L ;' lbk b] jsf] 6f / g] kfn s[ lif cg' ;Gwfg kl/ifb\ sf j} 1flgs >L slkn kf} 8] nnfO{ xflb{ s wGojfb lbg rfxG5' . ;fy} , o; k' :tsn] g] kfndf pv' If] qsf] ljsf;, cWoog / cg' ;Gwfgdf rf;f] /fVg' x' g] ;+ 3 ;+ :yf, cg' ;Gwfgstf{ / gLlt lgdf{ tfx?nfO{ ljz] if ;xof] u k' ¥ofpg] ck] Iff ub} { cfufdL lbgdf o; k' :tsnfO{ yk ;do ;fk] lIfs agfpg /rgfTds ;' emfjsf] ck] Iff /fVb5' . 8f= xl/ axfb' / s] =;L= ;x-;lrj Pjd\ dxfzfvf k| d' v s[ lif ljsf; dxfzfvf h] i7, @)&& s[ lif tyf kz' kG5L ljsf; dGqfno ljifo ;" rL != kl/ro 9 @= pv' afnLsf] jfg:klts ljj/0f 9 #= pTklQ 10 $= ljt/0f 10 %= pv' sf ljleGg k| hftLx? 11 %=! :ofs/d clkml;gf/d -Saccharum officinarum_ 11 %=@ :ofs/d /f] a:6d -S. robustum_ 11 %=# :ofs/d Ol8pn -S. edule_ 11 %=$ :ofs/d jf/j] /L -S. barberi_ 11 %=% :ofs/d ;fOg] lG;; -S. sinensis_ 11 %=^ :ofs/d :kf] 6] lgod -S. spontaneum_ 11 = k| fs[ lts tyf s[ lqd ?kdf pv' ;F u qml;Ë ug{ ;lsg] 12 &= g] kfndf kfOg] /} yfg] pv' sf] hftx? 13 *= pv' tyf lrgL If] q ljsf;sf] P] ltxfl;s k[ i7e" ld 13 (= g] kfndf pv' afnLsf] jt{ dfg cj:yf 15 !)= g] kfndf s[ ifsx?n] v] tL u/L /x] sf pv' sf hftx? / lrgLsf] k| ltnlAwtf k| ltzt 17 !!= pv' sf] k| zf] wg tyf ahf/Ls/0f 19 !@= lrgL pBf] uaf6 pTkfbg x' g] ;xpTkfbgx? 19 !@=! df] nf;] ; tyf O{ yfgf] n 19 !@=@ pv' sf] vf] i6f jf juf; 20 !@=# phf{ / ljB' t 20 !@=$ k| ] ;d8 20 !#= g] kfndf lrgLsf] dfu / cfk" lt{ sf] cj:yf 20 !$= g] kfndf ;~rfngdf /x] sf lrgL pBf] u / tLgsf] cj:yf 21 !%= pv' / lrgLsf] d" No 21 !^= pv' pTkfbgdf cGt/f{ li6« o kl/j] z;F usf] t' ngfTds cWoog 22 !&= cy{ tGqdf pv' sf] of] ubfg 24 !*= g] kfn ;/sf/af6 pv' afnLsf nflu xfn;Dd ePsf k| of;x? 25 !*=! pv' ls;fgx?nfO{ xfn;Dd ;/sf/n] lbPsf] k| ToIf tyf ck| ToIf cg' bfg, ;xfotf tyf ;x' lnotsf] ljj/0f 25 36 @@=! pv' sf] pTkfbg tyf pTkfbsTj ljsf;df hf] 8 lbg' kg] { 36 @@=@ hftLo k| ;f/0f k| j4{ g ug' { kg] { 36 @@=# oflGqs/0f k| j4{ g k| fyldstfsf ;fy ;~rfng ug' { kg] { 36 @@=$ k| lt:kwL{ s[ lif cg' ;Gwfg k| 0ffnLsf] ljsf; 36 @@=% lrgL pBf] ux?sf] Joj:yfksLo Ifdtfdf ;" wf/ x' g' kg] { 39 @@=^ ;dod} pv' sf] Go" gtd vl/b d" No lgwf{ /0f ug' { kg] { 39 @@=& d" No gLltdf ;' wf/ ug' { kg] { 39 @@=* pv' s[ ifsx?sf] btf{ Joj:yf nfu" ug' { kg] { 39 @@=( cGt/ dGqfno ;dGjo k| efjsf/L x' g' kg] { 40 @@=!) k| efjsf/L pv' ljsf; jf] 8{ sf] :yfkgf x' g' kg] { 40 @#= ;f/f+ z 40 cg' ;" rLx? g] kfndf pv' v] tLM jt{ dfg cj:yf tyf ;Defjgf 9 != kl/ro pv' g] kfnsf] Ps k| d' v gub] afnL xf] . g] kfndf pv' v] tLsf] ;' ?jft k/fk" j{ sfn b] lv x' F b} cfPsf] cg' dfg Joj:yf ul/G5 / o;sf] ;f+ :s[ lts dxTj klg /xL cfPsf] 5 . g] kfndf d' Votof lrgL, ;Vv/, u' 8, e] nL, v' bf] , h' ; cflb j:t' x? pTkfbgsf] nflu pv' sf] k| of] u x' g] ub{ 5 . t/fO{ sf ljleGg lhNnfdf Joj;flos ?kdf pv' v] tL ul/b} cfPsf] ePtfklg g] kfnsf ljleGg kxf8L lhNnfx?df ;d] t 3/fo;L k| of] usf] nflu yf] /} kl/df0fdf pv' v] tL ul/g] k| rng /x] sf] 5 . pkef] Qmfx?n] b} lgs pkef] u Joj:yf lrgL pTkfbg ug{ sf] nflu d' Vo sRrf kbfy{ pv' g} xf] . cGo afnLsf] t' ngfdf pTkfbg nfut sd nfUg] v] taf/Ldf sd x] /rfx ubf{ klg pTkfbg /fd| f] x' g] v' 6L afnLsf] ?kdf bf] ;| f] jif{ klg pTkfbg x' g] / cGo /f] u sL/fsf] k| sf] k klg Go" g x' g] x' gfn] pv' afnL s[ ifsx? dfem nf] slk| o 5 . w] /} h;f] d' n' sdf lrgL pTkfbgsf] k| d' v sRrf kbfy{ pv' xf] . ljleGg o' /f] lkog d' n' sdf r' sGb/af6 klg lrgL pTkfbg ul/G5 . ;+ ;f/sf] s" n lrgL pTkfbg dWo] ^) k| ltzt eGbf a9L pv' af6 / afF sL r' sGb/af6 ul/G5 . g] kfndf pv' v] tL lrgL ldnsf] lj:tf/;F u} a9\ b} uO{ /x] sf] 5 . g] kfnsf] t/fO{ If] qdf o;sf] v] tL a9L x' g] u/] sf] 5 . pv' sf] Joj;flos v] tL lj:tf/} kxf8sf s] xL lhNnf h:t} M sf:sL, u' NdLdf klg lj:tf/ eO{ /x] sf] 5 . @= pv' afnLsf] jfg:klts ljj/0f pv' pi0f tyf pkf] i0f If] qdf v] tL ul/g] , af] 6sf] nfF qmfdf clws uf9f lrgL hDdf ug{ ;Sg] ePsf] , cUnf] , Ps blno afnL xf] . ;fdfGotof lrgL pTkfbgsf] nfuL v] tL ul/g] pv' Saccharum spontaneum / Saccharum officinarum (Saccharum spp.) sf] cGt/ hftLo ;+ :s/0fsf] cfwf/df ljsf; ul/Psf x' g . of] pv' pi0f k| b] lzo ax' jlif{ o 3fF ;] afnL ;d" xsf] afnL xf] h;sf] ufF haf6 Ps eGbf a9L # b] lv $ ld6/ cUnf / % ;] =ld= df] 6f xfF ufx? cfpg] ub{ 5g / o; g] kfnL rng rNtLsf] efiffdf nfF qmf klg eGg] ul/G5 . log} nfF qmfx? g} lrgL pTkfbgsf] d' Vo sRrf kbfy{ x' g h;nfO{ kl/kSj cj:yf kl5 ldnx?df k] lnG5 . kl/kSj nf+ qmfdf !! b] lv !^ k| ltzt /] ;f, !@ b] lv !^ k| ltzt 3' ngzLn u' lnof] kbfy{ / ^# b] lv &# k| ltzt kfgLsf] dfqf kfOG5 . pv' sf] af] 6sf d' Vo efux?df h/f, xfF uf, km" n / kft kb{ 5g\ . g] kfndf pv' v] tLM jt{ dfg cj:yf tyf ;Defjgf 10 jg:ktL hutdf pv' afnLsf] jlu{ s/0f lgDgfg' ;f/ ul/Psf] 5 . Kingdom Plantae -Plants Subkingdom Tracheobionta -Vascular plants Superdivision Spermatophyta -Seed plants Division Magnoliophyta -Flowering plants Class Liliopsida -Monocotyledons Subclass Commelinidae Order Cyperales Family Poaceae -Grass family Genus Saccharum L. -sugarcane Species Saccharum officinarum L. -sugarcane #= pTklQ pv' sf] pTklQ blIf0f Plzof tyf blIf0f k" lj{ Plzofdf ePsf] xf] eGg] ljZjf; ul/G5 . pv' sf] j+ z ;] s] /d / s" n u| fldlgdf k5{ . pv' sf ljleGg k| hftL ePsfn] tL km/s km/s k| hftLx? km/s km/s :yfgdf pTklQ ePsf] eGg] a' emfO{ /x] sf] 5 . h:tf] ;] s] /d af/a] /L eGg] pv' sf] k| hftL ef/tdf pTklQ ePsf] dflgG5 eg] cGo k| hftLx? h:t} M ;] s] /d O8' n] / ;] s] /d clkml;gf/d Go" u' OgLofdf pTklQ ePsf] dflgG5 . dfGotf cg' ;f/ Go" u' OgLofdf pv' nfO{ afnLsf] ?kdf sl/a ^))) jif{ klxn] ckgfOPsf] lyof] . o;nfO{ gf] j] n s] g klg elgG5 . ef/tdf eg] O{ =k' = !*@& b] lv ;' ?cft ePsf] dflgG5 . $= ljt/0f ljZjsf sl/a () eGbf a9L d' n' sdf pv' v] tL ul/G5 / clwsf+ z b] zdf o;nfO{ lrgL pTkfbgsf nflu k| of] u ul/G5 . pv' sf] pTklQ blIf0f Plzof tyf blIf0f k" lj{ Plzofdf ePsf] dflgPtfklg o;sf] lj:tf/ ;+ ;f/ e/L g} ePsf] kfOG5 . cf7f} + ztfAbL lt/ c/aL Jofkf/Lx?n] blIf0f Plzofaf6 pv' ljZjsf d] 8L6] /flgog, d] ;f] kf] 6fldof, OhLK6 / pQ/ clk| msfdf lj:tf/ u/] sf lyP . xfn cfP/ ljZjsf w] /} d' n' sx? lrgL pTkfbgsf nflu cfjZos kg] { pv' sf] Joj;flos v] tLtkm{ nfu] sf 5g\ . ef/tdf clwsf+ z /fHox?df pv' v] tL x' g] u/] sf] 5 h;dWo] k| d' v ?kdf pTkfbg x' g] /fHox?df pQ/ k| b] z, ljxf/, dxf/fi6« , cfG" k| b] z, u' h/ft, dWo] k| b] z, sgf{ 6sf, tldngf8' , s] /fnf cflb /x] sf 5g\ . g] kfndf t/fO{ sf ljleGg lhNnfx?df g] kfndf pv' v] tLM jt{ dfg cj:yf tyf ;Defjgf 11 Joj;flos pv' v] tL e} /x] sf] 5 . h;dWo] s~rgk' /, gjnk/f;L, af/f, k;f{ , ;nf{ xL, /f} tx6, l;/fxf, ;' g;/L cflb k| d' v ?kdf /x] sf 5g\ . %= pv' sf ljleGg k| hftLx? %=! :ofs/d clkml;gf/d -Saccharum officinarum_ of] pv' nfO{ gf] jn Sofg klg elgG5 . of] k| hftLsf] pv' /+ lug, df] 6f] , rlDsnf] , g/d / nfdf] cGt/ufF 7 ePsf] x' G5 . o; k| hftLsf] pv' df /;sf] dfqf klg pNn] vgLo dfqfdf x' G5 . of] /fd| f] pTkfbg lbg] vfnsf] ePtfklg t' ;f/f] / ;' \ Vvf h:tf k| lts" n cj:yf ;xg g;Sg] vfnsf] x' G5 . ;fy} , o;df /ftf] ;8g /f] u klg a9L nfUg] x' G5 . of] k| hftLdf sfnf] kf] s] a9L nfUb5 . ufF h sd xfNg] / sd /] ;f x' g' of] k| hftLsf]...

This study is an attempt towards knowing farmers perspective on Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). Data was collected from 120 sample farmers in Karnataka among which 80 were insured and 40 were non-insured farmers. The results based on information solicited by farmers indicated that continuous drought in the previous years was the motivation to opt PMFBY. Education, farm size and the cost of borrowing from non-institutional sources significantly differed among insurers and non-insurers. Lack of awareness, lack of premium paying capacity and lack of faith were the reasons cited for not availing crop insurance by non-insured farmers. Discriminant analysis estimates revealed that factors like education, income, farm size, previous compensation, source and rate of short-term credit played an important role in discriminating farmers into different groups (loanee, non-loanee and non-insured). Farmers called for quick and transparent settlement of claims among other suggestions like individual farm assessment of losses to improve their participation in PMFBY.

The study analyzed the physical and financial performance of a new crop insurance scheme namely Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) in H-K region.The study revealed that the coverage of farmers under PMFBY increased by 8 per cent and area insured decreased by 3.72 per cent between kharif 2015 and kharif 2016 in Karnataka. Overall, the performance of PMFBY in Karnataka during the year 2016-17 revealed that there was an increase of 77.20 per cent in number of farmers insured and an increase in area insured by around 65 per cent from 2015-16 to 2016-17. Further, there was an increase of around 41 per cent in farmers insured and around 50 per cent in area insured from kharif 2016 to kharif 2017 in Karnataka. However, the trend was opposite in H-K region as there was a 5.84 per cent decrease in farmers covered and 3.69 decrease in area insured. The overall claims to premium ratio was less than unity 0.99 and 0.64 in Karnataka and H-K region, respectively during kharif 2016, implying PMFBY was financially viable. Multi picking and paddy rice issues add upto 94 per cent of the total pending claims in Karnataka during kharif 2016. Overall, in spite of improved performance of PMFBY compared to previous years, only 29 per cent of the net sown area of Karnataka was insured during the year 2016-17. Thus, to make PMFBY more effective it is suggested to provide premium discounts for group coverage of farmers and also to consider a change in claims settlement mechanism at state level with customer grievances cell which would bring in more farmers under crop insurance.

Indian economy is largely an agrarian economy as income from farm sector determines the fate of other sectors in the country. Thus, it is necessary to safeguard the farm sector from various production risks resulting from natural calamities and disasters. Though, the State Government provides some relief to the affected farmers through the Disaster Relief Fund but it is not enough to cover the losses to the crop. Therefore, there is a strong need to broaden the insurance policies for agricultural crops and their production.In such a scenario, agricultural insurance schemes come into the picture to help the farmers in agricultural risk management.Crop insurance is a financial mechanism to minimize the impact ofloss in farm income and protecting farmers against variations in yield by factoring in a large number of uncertainties which affect the crop yields.

Agriculture is inherently a risky enterprise because of its dependence on rainfall. To mitigate risks, farmers diversify crops and enterprises, maintain stabilization account or resort to the sale of assets. Crop insurance is a complementary institutional mechanism that aids farmers to cope with risks better. Considering the importance of crop insurance in risk mitigation, this paper using data from a large-scale farmers' survey we identify the factors that influence farmers' decision to buy crop insurance and subsequently assess its impact on farm income, production expenses and productive investments in agriculture. Farmers' adoption of crop insurance is low-4.80% kharif season and 3.17% in the rabi season mainly on account of lack of awareness about insurance products. Nevertheless, the probability of adoption of insurance is higher for those who experience higher crop loss and have some formal training in agriculture. The subsidy on premium also positively influences crop insurance uptake decisions. On the other hand, the factors like the lower social status, tenant farming and exposure to deficit-rainfall in the previous year are negatively associated with the decision to insure. The results on the impact of insurance are not conclusive to prove that insured farmer subsumes higher risks compared to the uninsured.

Global insurance markets are vast and diverse, and may offer many opportunities for remote sensing. To date, however, few operational applications of remote sensing for insurance exist. Papers claiming potential application of remote sensing typically stress the technical possibilities, without considering its contribution to customer value for the insured OPEN ACCESS Remote Sens. 2014, 6 10889 or to the profitability of the insurance industry. Based on a systematic search of available literature, this review investigates the potential and actual support of remote sensing to the insurance industry. The review reveals that research on remote sensing in classical claim-based insurance described in the literature revolve around crop damage and flood and fire risk assessment. Surprisingly, the use of remote sensing in claim-based insurance appears to be instigated by government rather than the insurance industry. In contrast, insurance companies are offering various index insurance products that are based on remote sensing. For example, remotely sensed index insurance for rangelands and livestock are operational, while various applications in crop index insurance are being considered or under development. The paper discusses these differences and concludes that there is particular scope for application of remote sensing by the insurance industry in index insurance because (1) indices can be constructed that correlate well with what is insured; (2) these indices can be delivered at low cost; and (3) it opens up new markets that are not served by claim-based insurance. The paper finally suggests that limited adoption of remote sensing in insurance results from a lack of mutual understanding and calls for greater cooperation between the insurance industry and the remote sensing community.

In the form of risk mitigating strategy insurance may play a vital role in anchoring a stable growth of agricultural sector through reduction of the financial losses suffered by the farmers due to damage and destruction of their crops, contents, machinery or accident with the farmer. The awareness regarding governmental initiatives has always been among the major hindering factors to take full advantage of the developmental efforts. The present study conducted in two districts (Palwal and Faridabad) of southern Haryana (vulnerable to Earthquake, Industrial & Chemical Disaster, Floods, Drought, Accidents, Fire, Health related Disaster, Hailstorm, Bio Terrorism etc.) shows that farmers awareness level regarding the agricultural insurance schemes was found at lowest ebb in terms of its components and sub components. Number of constraints were reported by the respondent farmers hindering the acquisition of Agricultural Insurance Scheme which need immediate attention of the stakeholders to fulfill the lofty dreams set forth in respect of the newly launched PradhanMantriFasalBimaYojna.

Crop insurance is a very well implemented mechanism in the economic and agricultural sectors of the developed countries. In the developing countries there are yet in practice traditional local systems of helping the other in the case of natural disasters. The transition to an organized system, based on buying insurance policies, is a very slow process and is, for the moment, used and accepted only by big land owners. The study based on a sample of 308 small farmers in Romania analyzes the factors influencing the decision of buying an insurance policy: age, education, size of the village, the proximity to a city, the type of culture, etc. The sampling method aimed at ensuring representativity on several levels: regional -villages from different counties; education -different levels of education for farmers and different fields of study; type of village -villages of different sizes and situated at various distances from towns; type of crop -farmers that mainly deal with vegetables, pomiculture, vine and field crops. Through two econometric models, Ordered Logit and Binary Logit, both the decision of buying an insurance policy and the type of insurance chosen (partial or full) are assessed. Results show a higher propensity towards using the insurance system in the case of younger farmers who have had access to tertiary education (especially in the field of economics and business), who live in big villages near important cities and who cultivate vegetables. Even though the study is regional, the emphasized mechanisms are universally valid and can be used by policymakers from developing economies.