Patna, Aug. 10: The Bihar government today blinked in its battle with the Centre on the crop insurance scheme, but said the implementation will come with the rider that the results would be reviewed after the current kharif season is over.

"We have decided to implement PMFBY (Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana) in its present form in the state for the current kharif season, but will evaluate it closely with relation to claims, compensation and the effect of diesel subsidy given to farmers for irrigation purposes during droughts. We will evaluate the reports and then decide on the scheme's implementation in the next cropping seasons," cooperatives minister Alok Kumar Mehta said.

He said the evaluation of the scheme would also focus on how much money was spent by the state government and farmers on the premium, and how much they got as compensation.

The government had so far resisted implementing the scheme citing the high financial burden that would accrue because of the premium which has to be shared equally with the Centre.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar had even suggested that the scheme be renamed "Pradhan Mantri-Mukhya Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana" because the Centre and states would be sharing an equal financial burden.

Minister Mehta said it would have been better had the Centre addressed Bihar's grievances on the scheme, and pointed out that the decision to implement it was taken to honour the concept of cooperative federalism enshrined in the Constitution.

"Despite this, we are still maintaining our stand that the premium rates for the scheme in Bihar are exorbitant and illogical. We are also sticking to our request, as stated by chief minister Nitish Kumar in the inter-state council meeting last month, to increase the central share to 90 per cent as the state was prone to natural disasters," Alok said.

According to the guidelines of the scheme, crop insurance is compulsory for farmers who have availed crop loans through Kisan Credit Cards. Participation of those who have not taken loans is optional.

Government data show that of the state's 1.62 crore farmers, 16.55 lakh availed crop insurance in the 2015 kharif season.

Bihar has been divided into six clusters under the crop insurance scheme and the premium rates for them differ as per the threat perception to the crops there, including that from flood and drought.

Under the new crop insurance scheme, aggressively pitched by the Union agriculture ministry headed by Bihar's Radha Mohan Singh, two per cent of the premium amount is to be paid by farmers, while the rest has to be equally shared by the state and central governments.

The estimated crop insurance amount for Bihar has been pegged at Rs 10,000 crore and the premium amount, at the average rate of 14.92 per cent, would be around Rs 1,500 crore. Farmers would share Rs 200 crore of this, while the state and the Centre would each take the burden of Rs 650 crore.

Sources in the government said the U-turn follows a meeting between cooperatives minister Mehta and Radha Mohan on August 8.