Why is govt not using satellite data to help farmers, asks Cong's Renuka Chowdhury

New Delhi: Vocal Parliamentarian and Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury, is mooting a private members bill which seeks to make modifications to the existing crop insurance schemes, especially the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), to address the specific risks posed by climate change. In a conversation with DH’s Amrita Madhukalya, on the sidelines of the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, Chowdhury spoke about the Bill, the pending Women’s Bill as well as the developments surrounding the resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar as Vice President.

Edited excerpts:

The bill you’re bringing – Climate Resilient Agriculture and Farmer Protection Bill, 2025 – talks about modifying the existing National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) to include climate-resilience. How does that help farmers?

There’s some work going on in PUSA for years where traits from different strains have been taken to make crops resistant. For instance, the glow from glowworms is taken and put in wheat, so that, if the crop is distressed the plant glows. If a farmer does not get protection from climate, he’s a victim 500 times over, right from the time he buys his seed. If the seeds are fake then he suffers, if rain or hail damages his crop, he suffers and if there's not adequate water, too, he suffers. The government has accurate data – down to the part where satellites can tell us that these hectares will be affected by a climate event on so and so day, or that there will be pestilence. We do not use that data, I am baffled by why we do not do so. Unless we push for it, it will not be used. A farmer needs this support as well as access to post-harvest technology. The BARC has irradiation technology which does not alter the nature of the seed but increases the shelf life of the products. Potatoes, onions, prawns, fish etc can be irradiated.

Your bill also talks about identifying Climate Vulnerable Districts (CVDs). The government has also done this.

They have identified so many districts and have done nothing. They made an announcement but gave us no details of preventive measures. Have they spelt out one measure? No information centres or hotlines. We have identified so many hotpots that need checks. Unless we bring in measures and sensitise the farmer, they will suffer. In my state, pink weevils were destroying crops and we introduced pheromone traps to catch them. There is technology, we just need to put it to good use.

Your bill also talks of modifying the PMFBY in terms of crop-insurance. What is the bill asking for?

The government announced crop insurance but said we will remove the existing system across ministries and bring it under one umbrella. But did they carry out an audit? They have to divide these farmers in groups – for instance, bundle 0-5 acres as one plank since for these farmers mechanised farming is costly. Labour under NREGS is in short supply. There’s a huge lacunae, a gap in what is needed and what is there on offer.

There has to be monetary checks and balances. Farmers do not have savings; if a crop fails then they die by suicide. They need immediate cash transfer. We spend 17 times more on fertilisers and 11 times more on pesticides than what is needed for chilli.

This Session saw the resignation from Jagdeep Dhankhar. What are our views on that?

The government has always sought to exert control – it is borne from an inferiority complex and the inexperience of governance. They have not understood the nuances of democracy yet. Most of their MPs are not allowed to talk. It's been a decade and there’s no Deputy Speaker in Lok Sabha. No RTI or Lokpal. These instruments of democracy that do not allow them to be the runaway horse are trampled. We are not in favour of Dhankar – he was brought in because of what he did in West Bengal – but his removal is unconstitutional. I have been telling my own party, we need to do much more. The trend now is that governors sit in a state and work against the elected government. They’re curtaining all the four pillars of democracy.

The government says that the SIR exercise can’t be discussed because it is about the EC, and the government cannot reply on its behalf.

We can still debate it. We do not discuss the Supreme Court in Parliament, but we still debate it. We don’t need to name judges. By this yardstick, how are we bringing in the impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Varma. Till yesterday the Aadhar was fine, and today we cannot admit it for the voter list. The time span given to them is too little. How does that challenge the EC?

You were the first minister to head the WCD ministry. How do you think the ministry is shaping up?

It’s like running on a treadmill, it’s reaching nowhere. We brought in the Domestic Violence Bill and I faced a lot of resistance in Parliament. In villages, when I told the men that if you raise your hand on the women, they would laugh it off. Then, we ensured that everyone involved in child marriages – be it a priest or a tent guy – will be punished. When we started, the amount of issues were staggering. I had a journalist, an air hostess, among others, bring in cases of violence. Since then, I have not seen any meaningful progress. The Women’s Bill is still pending in Rajya Sabha, we brought it in the Upper House so that it does not lapse. This government lacks the will to pass it.