Patna, Oct 22 (IANS) RJD Lok Sabha MP and national president of the party’s farmers’ wing, Sudhakar Singh, has written to Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, seeking an extension of the deadline for applications under the Agricultural Input Subsidy scheme, citing technical glitches in the online portal and the absence of an option to report hailstorm-related crop damage.
In his letter, Singh said excessive rainfall in September, coupled with the opening of sluice gates at various river dams, led to a sudden rise in water levels and flooding in several districts.
Hailstorms in different parts of the state also caused extensive damage to standing crops, resulting in significant financial losses for farmers.
The state government has invited online applications to provide financial assistance to farmers affected by these natural disasters.
However, Singh alleged that technical problems with the application portal were preventing many farmers from completing and submitting their forms.
He said the seven-day application window was insufficient, particularly given the technical difficulties faced by applicants.
Unless the deadline was extended, many eligible farmers could be deprived of the benefits of the scheme, he warned.
Singh also pointed out that the portal lacked a specific provision for reporting crop losses caused by hailstorms.
As a result, affected farmers were unable to accurately record the nature and extent of the damage in their applications, potentially creating difficulties in securing government assistance.
The RJD MP urged the chief minister to issue immediate instructions to the concerned department to resolve the technical problems and ensure that the application process was accessible, transparent and efficient.
He also demanded that a separate option for reporting hailstorm-related crop damage be incorporated into the portal and that the application deadline be extended to give all eligible farmers sufficient time to submit their claims.
Singh said these measures were necessary to ensure that farmers affected by floods, excessive rainfall and hailstorms could access the financial assistance intended to help them cope with crop losses.
–IANS
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