Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) Demands Loan Waiver, Scraping of PMFBY, Judicial Probe into Floods and Landslides; to Submit Memorandums to District Collectors on November 4.
Groundxero | Nov. 1, 2025
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) has accused both the Union and state governments of “administrative failure and criminal recklessness” in responding to widespread devastating floods and landslides, and the Mantha cyclone that have ravaged several states across the country this year. In a strongly worded press release on Friday, the farmers’ collective announced that its state units will submit memorandums to district collectors on November 4 demanding proper compensation, physical verification of losses, and immediate relief to affected households.
‘Victims Denied Due Relief’
SKM said that the state governments in Punjab, Haryana, and Uttarakhand have failed to conduct physical surveys and upload verified data on losses in the public domain — a lapse that, it said, would deny rightful compensation to the flood victims. SKM highlighted a stark disparity in compensation for fully damaged houses:
- Punjab: Declared a “paltry sum” of Rs. 1.2 lakh for fully damaged pucca houses.
- Uttarakhand: Announced an even lower amount of Rs. 0.95 lakh.
- Himachal Pradesh: Set a more generous, though still insufficient, amount of Rs. 7 lakh.
SKM termed the disparity “cruel and insensitive,” and urged district administrations to hold public village panchayats supervised by revenue officials to assess losses transparently. “Without field verification, thousands of rural families will be left without any support,” an SKM leader said.
Criticism of Disaster Management Act Amendments
A major focus of the press release was the recent amendments made in April 2025 to the Disaster Management Act. SKM has also come down heavily on the Union Government for what it termed “anti-people amendments” to the Disaster Management Act, introduced in April 2025. The amendments removed Sections 12 and 13, effectively disallowing loan waivers and interest relief to disaster-affected households.
According to SKM, the move was aimed at nullifying a Kerala High Court order that upheld loan waivers for victims of the 2024 Wayanad landslides, which killed nearly 300 people. “The Modi-Shah regime’s decision reflects a narrow-minded approach that denies justice to victims of natural calamities,” the statement said.
The joint platform of the farmers’ union demanded that the government repeal the amendments immediately and provide full loan and interest waivers for at least three years to all households affected by floods and landslides across India.
‘PM Fasal Bima Yojana – a Corporate Bonanza’
Renewing its long-standing criticism of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), SKM called the crop insurance scheme a “colossal failure” that benefits corporations rather than farmers. SKM cited data from 2017 to 2025to back its claim:
“Since 2017, Rs. 2.83 lakh crore has been collected in PMFBY as subsidy from the governments and premium from the farmers but only 1.80 lakh crore has been disbursed making huge profit of one lakh crores to the corporate companies at the expenditure of the farmers.”
“PMFBY has become a corporate bonanza at the expense of the farming community,” SKM said, demanding the scheme’s replacement with a public sector insurance corporation for crops and livestock, modeled on the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).
Call for Judicial Inquiry into Flood Causes
SKM reiterated its demand for a judicial inquiry under a sitting Supreme Court judge to investigate the causes of recurrent floods and landslides, particularly in ecologically sensitive Himalayan states.
“Large-scale deforestation, unregulated construction, and real estate expansion without environmental impact studies are destroying fragile ecosystems,” SKM said. It called for remedial measures and Rs 1 lakh crore in central assistance, including ₹25,000 crore specifically for Punjab, to rebuild lives and livelihoods.
SKM also announced plans to set up a People’s Commission on Floods and Climate Change, which will submit its preliminary report within three months.
Warning against Farmer Harassment
The statement further condemned what it described as “harassment of farmers in the name of stubble burning.” It said the responsibility of clearing stubble bales lay with state governments to ensure timely wheat sowing. “SKM will not tolerate the arrest and intimidation of farmers,” the statement warned.
The farmers’ unions will also demand that the moisture limit for paddy procurement be increased from 17% to 22% nationwide, a key issue for farmers in northern states.
Nationwide Mobilisation Planned
SKM said its constituent farmer unions would mobilise affected communities to press for “just compensation, debt relief, and accountability” from the administration.
“If governments continue to neglect their duty, we will launch mass struggles across the country,” the statement declared.
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Background:
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha, a joint platform of over 40 farmer unions, led the historic year-long farmers’ protest against the three central farm laws in 2020–21. It continues to coordinate nationwide movements on agrarian, environmental, and livelihood issues.
Feature Image:
AIKS leaders Sucha Singh Ajnala and Bhupinder Singh Chinna visit a mid-day meal worker in her home. The house has been completely washed away in the flood water. No government officers have visited or made physical verification till today 25 October 2025. Her house is in the Assembly constituency of Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur District and Gurdeep Singh Randhawa from Aam Admi Party is the MLA. There was no physical verification in the entire village so far, and the MLA also did not visit the village in the last two months.