The Hindu Business Line : Poultry farmers yet to get bird flu compensation

Despite being worst affected by the outbreak of bird flu earlier this year, poultry farmers in Maharashtra are yet to receive compensation from the Rs 80-crore package announced by the State Government in March.

A delegation of poultry farmers met the Chief Minister, Mr Vilasrao Deshmukh, recently and raised the issue of delays and elaborate procedures involved to avail themselves of the funds. The compensation package works out to Rs 20 for a bird.

"We asked the Government to remove the electricity bill criteria. Since there is load-shedding in several parts of the State, the billing criteria would be improper," said Ms Anuradha Desai, Chairperson of the National Egg Co-ordination Committee (NECC), who led the delegation.

To show an electricity bill as proof of running the farm in the State would deprive a large number of farmers the benefit, as many farmers use gas or charcoal brooders instead of electricity, she pointed out.

The delegation requested that the State Government revert to the criteria norms laid out earlier, which took into consideration the size of the farms and the number of birds it housed. The delegation received an assurance from the Chief Minister that its problems would be sorted out.

Further, Ms Desai pointed out that it was important that Maharashtra get the relief disbursement process rolling quickly, as other States such as Karnataka and Punjab could follow too. Since Maharashtra was the worst hit by the outbreak, other States do not want to disburse the relief money before Maharashtra, she observed. The first bird flu outbreak in the country had been reported out of Nandurbar district in Maharashtra in mid-February. And this had set off a panic reaction, with consumers staying away from eggs and chicken.

Procedural delays

Complaining about the procedural delays, a Pune-based poultry farmer told Business Line that they were being asked to submit several documents and unnecessary photographs to claim compensation.

In the name of keeping fraud claims at bay, poultry farmers are being asked to submit several copies of the same document.

Photographs of the different farms, pictures of the different sheds in the farm with the chicken and the owner of the farm, he elaborated.

Easier credibility methods

There are easier methods to establish the credibility of the farmer through checking sales and purchase bills, he pointed out.

The State had also said that big poultry farmers with more than 50,000 birds would be paid a compensation of Rs 10 lakh, to start with.

The remaining compensation would come after the necessary checks were made. But that too is not forthcoming, he pointed out.

"If relief does not come at the correct time, it is of no use," he says, dismayed with the delays.