Page 29 - The Insurance Times August 2025

brought out the need for protection against catastrophic risk most Indian cities are densely populated and do not adhere
arising out of a nuclear accident. Indian Nuclear Insurance to best architectural layout standards. Also, a majority of
Pool (INIP) was formed in 2015 and is managed by GIC Re both residential and commercial premises do not comply
with an indemnity limit of 1500 crore, per location. with earthquake and flood resistance safety guidelines.
These aspects make them highly vulnerable to natural and
Health Insurance Business - Health insurance business is man-made perils.
classified into Government Sponsored Health Insurance,
Group Health Insurance (Other than Government Spon- As regards, health insurance in India, the top 5 states ac-
sored) and Individual Health Insurance. count for 66% of the total Health Insurance premium

Personal Accident Business - During 2018-19, the Indian Conclusion
insurance industry has covered a total of 120.75 crore lives Thus, taking into account various needs of reaching higher
under Personal Accident Insurance.
penetration, awareness, innovation in the industry, open-
ing up of sector, globalization, etc, the government decided
The Overseas Travel Insurance and Domestic Travel In-
to liberalize the industry in 2000 allowing new private sec-
surance products in the market.
tor and also FDI in the sector.
Micro Insurance In India, due to lesser awareness levels and education on
Microinsurance is to reach out to the lower economic spec- insurance, the sector has not been able to see the desired
results. The assets of individuals are left unprotected. Also,
trum of the population through affordable insurance prod-
the sector had not been able to reach its potential as cus-
ucts and solutions. IRDAI through micro insurance regula-
todian of funds for national development and protection of
tions in 2005 has created a platform to distribute insurance
products, which are affordable to the rural and urban poor assets.
thus enabling financial inclusion of the masses. The distri-
But things are changing in India as well. The government
bution is primarily through Non-Government Organizations initiatives in terms of providing protection to the uninsured
(NGOs) and Self Help Groups (SHGs).
population for life, health and crops are steps to improve
insurance coverage and penetration levels. However, cre-
The major General Micro Insurance products are health ating more awareness at the individual level and designing
insurance, cover for belongings, such as, hut, livestock or
products keeping in view the general population needs for
tools or instruments, personal accident, etc.Types of Micro
protection are the needs of the day.
Insurance Product offered by general insurers are Cattle
Insurance Policy, Agriculture Pumpset Insurance Policy, This calls for more innovation, larger investment in technol-
Janata Personal Accident Policy, Silkworm Sukshma Policy, ogy to reach out to the masses at the different segments of
Sheep & Goat Micro Insurance Policy, householders Policy the population. Also, in several insurance product lines,
etc. misspelling is a big issue. Thus, insurance sector requires
developing and distributing innovative and appropriate prod-
General and Health Insurance ucts to fulfill the needs of the different sectors of the
The penetration of General (Non-Life) insurance and Health economy and different segments of the population by cre-
insurance in India is even lower than the Life insurance ating awareness and reach.
market. Thus the majority of the market is constituted by
Motor and others which consists of Health insurance also. Bibliography
Though there had been some push in the market in regard 1. IRDA Annual report 2018-19
to Health insurance due to increased awareness particularly 2. Munich Re 2019 Group Annual Report
among the middle class population and also due to Govern-
3. Global insurance industry insights, 2014 - McKinsey &
ment schemes, but the proportion of other important lines
Company
of General insurance products like Fire is very low.
4. Insurance industry - Road Ahead - KPMG and Bengal
Chamber of Commerce
Around 60% of the Indian subcontinent landmass is vulner-
able to earthquakes and other natural catastrophes, and at 5. George E Rejda. "Principles of risk management and
least 38 Indian cities lie in high-risk seismic zone. Further, insurance" (Pearson Education).

26 August 2025 The Insurance Times