I. VENKATANARAYANA, J.

( 1 ) ANDHRA Pradesh Rythu Sangham, which claims to be the largest Farmers Union, has invoked Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking for a declaration that the national Agricultural Insurance Scheme is an arbitrary, capricious and unlawful Scheme and also seeks a direction from this Court to direct the first respondent-Union of India to formulate Insurance Scheme suitable for dry land farmers.

( 2 ) THE factual matrix leading to the filing of this writ petition is briefly set out as hereunder : The petitioner-Organisation submits that the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme ( scheme for short) was devised and adopted without consultation with or even without giving notice to farmers. The farmers in the Districts of Ananthapur, Cuddapah, Kurnool, Chittoor and Mahabubnagar are constantly affected by drought during Kharif season resulting in the loss of groundnut and paddy crops. Fanners in these semiarid regions have taken groundnut as their professional crop and they cannot cultivate the land unless they receive the insurance loan which is compulsorily insurable and pay the premium ranging from 1. 5% of the loan and in the case of Rabi and wheat it is 3 of the loan. In short, it is the submission of the petitioner that this loan is of no use for the arid and semiarid areas where there is drought almost every year. Ultimately it is submitted that the entire Scheme is unscientific, arbitrary and capricious having no nexus with the object.

( 3 ) A detailed counter-affidavit was filed by the General Insurance Corporation of India (Implementing Agency,) which is the second respondent herein. It is submitted that the second respondent is the Implementing Agency of the Scheme formulated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. The National Agricultural Insurance Scheme has been formulated based on the experience gained in implementing comprehensive Crop Insurance Scheme. The Scheme is a welfare measure where losses suffered by a few are met from the funds accumulated through small contributions made by many who are exposed to similar risks. Crop Insurance is an Insurance Scheme aiming at mitigating losses suffered by the fanners on account of uncertain risks. The Crop Insurance has to be done on the basis of area Approach and it indemnifies the insured in terms of money for loss or damage from the common pool of funds created by contributions from a large group of similarly exposed farmers. The Crop Insurance Scheme provides indemnity based on the yield data of the area. It is also stated that the scheme was questioned in various High Courts including High Court of Andhra Pradesh and High Court of Kerala. The Division Bench of this Court has confirmed and upheld the validity of the Scheme in WP No. 11882. 13115 to 13119 of 1987 dated 23-8-1988. It is further submitted that the High Court of Kerala in OP Nos. 11380 of 1985, 368, and 1768 of 1986 has upheld that validity of the Scheme.

( 4 ) THE 4th respondent i. e. , Director, Bureau of Statistics of Economics filed a counter-affidavit opposing the issuance of writ. It is submitted in the counter-affidavit that a crop cutting experiment has been conducted in the State as per the guidelines of the National Sample Survey Organization. To meet the requirements of the National Agricultural Insurance Scheme, crop cutting experiments are being planned, monitored and conducted on all the insured crops with the assistance of the Agricultural Department. In short, it is submitted that this respondent has not exhibited any bias in undertaking the crop cutting experiments.

( 5 ) THE first respondent-Union of India filed a detailed counter-affidavit. In the counter-affidavit it is submitted that the writ petition is liable to be dismissed on the sole ground that no statutory right has been violated. The Crop Insurance Scheme has been in vogue from 1985 and the Scheme has been formulated in consultation with the State Governments and Union Ter

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