Bangla Shasya Bima (BSB)
Crop insurance where the farmer pays nothing at all — the state government funds the entire premium, for every notified crop, from sowing through to post-harvest.
Run by: Department of Agriculture, Government of West Bengal
- Premium
- Zero — paid by the state
- Cover
- Prevented sowing to post-harvest
- Risks
- Weather, pest and disease
- Sum insured
- Scale of Finance × insured area
Overview
Most crop insurance fails at the same point: the premium. A farmer weighing a certain cost against an uncertain payout usually skips it, and is uninsured in the year it matters. West Bengal removed that decision from Kharif 2019 by paying the whole premium itself — Bangla Shasya Bima costs the farmer nothing, including on cash crops like potato and sugarcane where farmers once paid a share.
Cover runs across the crop's life against adverse weather as well as pest and disease. It has five parts: prevented or failed sowing (up to 25% of the sum insured if you could not sow because of insufficient rain), mid-season adversity (an on-account payout when the season's yield is projected below 50% of normal), localised calamity (hailstorm, landslide, inundation, cloudburst or fire on your own plot — report within 72 hours), post-harvest loss (mainly paddy, up to two weeks after cutting, against hail and unseasonal rain — report within 72 hours), and the broad end-of-season yield shortfall.
The sum insured is the Scale of Finance for that crop, fixed by the District Level Technical Committee and notified by the state, multiplied by your insured area. The broad yield claim is worked out by the area approach — crop-cutting experiments, automated weather stations and satellite data set the yield for the insurance unit against a threshold. The scheme is run through empanelled insurers — Agriculture Insurance Company of India and SBI General among them, varying by cluster and year. Notified crops (Aman, Aus and Boro paddy, jute, wheat, maize, mustard, potato, sugarcane, lentil and more) vary by season and district. Both loanee and non-loanee farmers growing a notified crop can enrol.
What you get
The benefit as the state notifies it — nothing here is an estimate.
- No premium whatsoever — the state government funds the entire cost of the insurance, for every notified crop.
- Prevented-sowing cover of up to 25% of the sum insured when insufficient rain stops you sowing at all.
- Mid-season on-account payout when the season's yield is heading below 50% of normal.
- Individual assessment for a localised hailstorm, landslide, inundation, cloudburst or fire, and for post-harvest damage to cut paddy — if reported within 72 hours.
- Open to both loanee and non-loanee farmers growing a notified crop.
Who is eligible
State schemes usually state their criteria as prose rather than a checklist. This is that prose, unpacked — the department’s verification is what decides.
You qualify if
- Permanent resident of West Bengal
- Growing a crop notified for your season and district
- Loanee farmers (crop loan taken or applied for) and non-loanee farmers alike
- Sharecroppers (bargadars) with a recorded cultivation right
- Enrolled within the season's cut-off date
Not covered
- Damage by wild or domestic animals — grazing or destruction, including by elephants and wild boar
- Theft or clandestine sale of the crop, and intentional destruction
- Crops not notified for that season and district
- War, nuclear and terrorism risks, and losses from a crop burnt on a public authority's order
- Enrolment after the season's cut-off date
Documents you need
Have these ready before you start — most rejections are a missing paper, not a missing right.
- Aadhaar card
- Land record / proof of cultivation, or the barga (sharecropper) record
- Bank passbook
- Crop and area details for the season
How to apply
Fewer steps than a central scheme, and usually one office rather than a portal.
- 1
Enrol before the season cut-off
Register on banglashasyabima.net, at a Bangla Sahayata Kendra, a Duare Sarkar camp, or your block agriculture office, within the season's window.
- 2
Nothing to pay
There is no premium to remit. The state pays the insurer directly, so enrolment is the only step for the farmer.
- 3
Report the loss
For a localised calamity or post-harvest loss on your plot, intimate it within 72 hours. A widespread shortfall is picked up through the area-approach assessment without an individual report.
- 4
Assessment and payout
The insurer assesses the loss — by crop-cutting data for a widespread shortfall, by ground inspection for an individual claim — and pays compensation into the registered account.
If something goes wrong
Missing from the list, or payment stuck — here is the channel the department itself publishes for it.
- For an enrolment not recorded, a claim rejected or underpaid, or compensation not credited, first raise it with the Assistant Director of Agriculture at your block and the District Deputy Director of Agriculture, and with the insurer's toll-free number given on banglashasyabima.net. For a dispute with the insurer, escalate through its grievance officer, then IRDAI's Bima Bharosa (bimabharosa.irdai.gov.in) and, if still unresolved, the Insurance Ombudsman.
- For the state side, use West Bengal's CMO grievance portal / Public Grievance Monitoring System at cmo.wb.gov.in — it is trackable and escalates to the Head of Department. Keep your application ID and the loss-intimation reference.
Frequently asked questions
Do I really pay nothing?
Correct. Since Kharif 2019 the West Bengal government pays the entire premium, for all notified crops — including cash crops like potato and sugarcane, where farmers once paid a share.
Does it cover pests and disease, or only weather?
Both — plus prevented sowing, mid-season adversity, localised calamities (hail, landslide, inundation, cloudburst, fire) and post-harvest loss for paddy.
Are elephant or wild-boar crop losses covered?
No. Damage by wild or domestic animals, and theft, are excluded. Bangla Shasya Bima is for weather, pest and disease loss.
I have not taken a crop loan. Can I still enrol?
Yes. Non-loanee farmers growing a notified crop are eligible, exactly as loanee farmers are, and so are recorded sharecroppers.
How is my claim worked out?
For a widespread shortfall, by the area approach — crop-cutting experiments, weather stations and satellite data set the unit's yield against a threshold. For a localised calamity or post-harvest loss on your own plot, report it within 72 hours for an individual assessment.
What is the sum insured?
The Scale of Finance for that crop, fixed by the District Level Technical Committee and notified by the state, multiplied by your insured area.
Where and by when do I enrol?
On banglashasyabima.net, at a Bangla Sahayata Kendra, a Duare Sarkar camp or the block agriculture office, before the season's cut-off date announced each Kharif and Rabi.
Facts checked against banglashasyabima.net on 20 October 2026. editorial policy.