General insurance companies reduced their exposure to crop insurance under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) during FY24 despite the government’s push to expand the insurance coverage in the farm sector. Gross direct premium underwritten by insurers declined by 4.17 per cent to Rs 30,677 crore during the fiscal as against Rs 32,011 crore in the previous year even as farmers faced crop losses due to floods, unseasonal rains and heatwaves. Crop insurance premium underwritten had risen by 8.66 per cent to Rs 29,465 crore in the previous fiscal…