Gujarat Govt launches Animal Insurance For 1 Lakh Livestock; Farmers Pay Rs 229
Gujarat Animal Insurance marks a major step in livestock protection, as the state government rolls out affordable cover to safeguard farmers against losses.
Gujarat Animal Insurance scheme aims to protect 1 lakh livestock, with farmers required to pay just Rs 229 for insurance coverage.
NEW DELHI, Gujarat Animal Insurance: Gujarat livestock owners can now insure their animals for up to Rs 40,000 for one year by paying a premium of only Rs 229 per animal. The state government has set a target of covering one lakh animals in 2026-27 under the Pashudhan Bima Sahay Yojana. Minister and government spokesperson Jitu Vaghani announced the target in Gandhinagar. The state and the Centre together bear 85 per cent of the premium.
Gujarat Animal Insurance: How the Premium Subsidy Works
Gujarat is paying Rs 1,300 per animal as premium assistance, which is the 85 per cent government share. The farmer pays the remaining Rs 229, so the full premium comes to about Rs 1,529 per animal, or roughly 3.8 per cent of the maximum sum insured. The scheme runs under the Centre’s National Livestock Mission, whose livestock insurance component has a flat 15 per cent beneficiary share nationwide. Earlier, farmers paid between 20 and 50 per cent depending on category and area.
Each family can insure up to 10 large animals or 100 small ones. Eligible large animals include cows, buffaloes, horses, donkeys, camels, bulls, bullocks and male buffaloes. The 10-to-1 ratio follows the national “cattle unit” system, in which one large animal equals ten small animals. Vaghani said the cover is meant to protect livestock-rearing families from financial loss when an animal dies suddenly, since animals are a primary source of income for many of them.
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Gujarat Animal Insurance: Funding, Applications and Last Year’s Numbers
For 2026-27, the Centre has approved Rs 250 lakh for Gujarat under the scheme and has released Rs 115 lakh as the first instalment. The state has separately sanctioned Rs 55 lakh under its own livestock insurance assistance scheme.
Demand is already close to the target. The i-Khedut portal has received applications for 87,147 animals so far. The Animal Husbandry Department is making arrangements to bring all eligible applicants under cover. Last year, 48,695 animals belonging to 12,228 livestock farmers were insured in Gujarat, so this year’s target is roughly double that.
Gujarat Animal Insurance: National Context and What Farmers Should Do
Livestock insurance in India has historically reached only a small share of animals. Central government figures show 21.01 lakh animals were insured nationwide in 2024-25, against 10.08 crore households that own livestock or poultry, according to the 19th Livestock Census. A parliamentary committee report earlier flagged that no animals were insured in 2022-23, compared with 1,74,061 in 2021-22. Industry estimates put cattle insurance penetration below 5 per cent. Farmer surveys have cited low awareness, paperwork and claim hurdles as the main barriers.
The Centre launched the Pashudhan Bima Portal on September 28, 2026. It brings policy issuance, premium management, claims and monitoring onto a single digital platform. The portal states that most claims are meant to be settled within 21 days of submission. Insured animals carry identification tags, which are central to enrolment and claims.
Vaghani urged livestock farmers to insure their eligible animals on time. He also asked them to keep identification tags intact and give accurate details at registration. He said errors or missing tags could cause difficulty in receiving assistance later. Farmers can apply through the i-Khedut portal or their local Animal Husbandry Department office.
