Fake Land Records Used to Claim Crop Insurance in Jhansi

Fake Land Records Used to Claim Crop Insurance, ₹4.26 Crore Fraud Under Probe in Bundelkhand

Jhansi has emerged as the centre of a major crop insurance fraud after investigators uncovered large-scale manipulation of land records under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. Officials say forged entries linked to land owned by the Bundelkhand Industrial Development Authority were used to illegally claim insurance payouts worth approximately ₹4.26 crore.

According to preliminary findings, fake land ownership records were created for around 67 acres of BIDA land, even though compensation for the same parcels had already been paid years earlier. These manipulated entries were then used to submit insurance claims, which were credited to more than 250 bank accounts. In total, officials identified over 450 forged entries and manipulation of more than 2,300 plot numbers.

The majority of fraudulent claims were traced to villages falling under the BIDA jurisdiction, particularly Dagarwah and Bajna. Authorities said the scale of manipulation suggests systematic collusion rather than isolated misuse.

In Dagarwah alone, 314 fake entries were allegedly used to siphon off about ₹3.29 crore. In Bajna, investigators found that 444 government record numbers were altered across 94 accounts, leading to payouts of roughly ₹1.26 crore using more than 1,300 plot numbers. Officials noted that the number of claims far exceeded the actual cultivable plots in these villages.

Other villages under BIDA, including Bemer, Imlia, Bachhauni, Baidora, Basai, Parasai and Amarpur, are also under scrutiny for similar irregularities. The final amount involved could rise as verification continues at the tehsil level.

Under the crop insurance scheme, claims are supposed to be validated by village-level officials and cross-checked by insurance companies against official land records before payments are released. Despite these safeguards, the fraudulent claims went undetected, raising serious questions about verification processes and administrative accountability.

Deputy Director of Agriculture Mahendra Pal Singh confirmed that investigations are ongoing and that recovery proceedings and FIR registrations will follow once responsibility is fixed. Officials are also examining the role of Common Service Centres through which many of the applications were submitted.

The fallout has disrupted insurance disbursements across the district. Payments meant for around 20,000 farmers for the Kharif season have been temporarily put on hold pending verification. While claims for approximately 67,000 Kisan Credit Card holders have already been settled, authorities say nearly 10,000 additional cases are suspicious and require detailed scrutiny.

The current Kharif season reportedly recorded crop losses affecting about 87,000 farmers, making timely and accurate payouts critical. Officials warned that large-scale manipulation of records not only drains public funds but also delays genuine relief to affected cultivators.

Experts say cases like this underline how welfare schemes become vulnerable when land records, beneficiary data and payment systems are not rigorously reconciled. Strong internal controls, independent auditing services in India and disciplined claim-wise reconciliation similar to professional bookkeeping services in India are often essential to detect anomalies early and prevent systemic abuse of public insurance programmes.