Kolkata, Feb 20 : Saurabh Mishra, Joint Secretary – Insurance, Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance, Government of India , has discussed how the current pandemic provides an opportunity for carriers to showcase the industry’s societal mission – of helping individuals manage financial and mortality risk, despite tumultuous times.

On a positive note, awareness of life insurance has increased, and at the same time, the need for the industry to communicate this mission has only increased with the pandemic.

According to Mishra, with digital interaction rising by 50%, digitising the distribution of insurance as a critical theme should be focused upon by insurance carriers.

Joydeep Roy, , Global Health Insurance Leader, PwC shared in his address his perspective on International and National trends in Insurance.

He briefly mentioned issues arising out of payment revolution, organizational structural changes, capital shift, localization, stating ,”Industry is in a state of flux”.

He emphasized on emerging areas of interest as capital preservation, skill agenda, social sustainability and governance.

He mentioned that while Retail Insrance has grown by 30% and health by 15%, general insurance has grown by 3%. “ No country in the world can survive without strong insurance penetration’’, he said.

N M Patnaik, CFO, Haldia Petrochemicals in CFOs’ Perspective shared his expectations from the insurance sector in the new normal. “ Being a highly regulated sector, BFSI sector has come back on track and would help the economy grow’’, he said.

He shared that, the agenda of serving the dynamic consumer need should be catered by not only serving the customer on-demand and through various digital channels but also engaging deeply with their customers, creating personalized digital experiences for them during interaction. The concept of “ Digital “ should be used to seize the opportunity while staying true to its social mission of protecting from mortality and income risks.

He also spoke regarding Claim Management which is indeed a major pain area of the sector.

Patnaik even discussed on how SMEs and MSMEs can be integrated on one platform, in mandated fashion integration. He emphasized on Risk Inspection as need of the hour for Insurance.



A K Mukherjee, Chairman, CII Eastern Region Economic Affairs and Taxation Subcommittee & Director ( Finance ) & Chief Financial Officer, Exide Industries Limited discussed how due to this pandemic the Health and Life Insurance has become necessary than ever.

“ In the Union Budget:2021-22, the government has announced the increased limit on foreign direct investment (FDI) in Indian insurance companies from 49 per cent to 74 per cent. This will lead to more capital infusion in the insurance sector which will surely have a major implication in the economy, ” he said.

Panel Discussion on Present Scenario and Road Ahead in Insurance – Implication on Industry was conducted by Vikas Mittal, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Magma HDI General Insurance Co; Vijay Kumar, CEO, Go Digit General Insurance Ltd; Sanjay Datta, Chief- Underwriting Claim & Reinsurance, ICICI Lombard; with Joydeep Roy, Global Health Insurance Leader, PWC, as Session Moderator.

The dynamic panel discussion revolved around simplification, commercial ease, technological, cyber and risk mitigation in insurance. Risk literacy, legal literacy and regulatory aspect is critical to the sector, the panel revealed. Roles of Business Contingency Plans were critical during the Pandemic . Product innovation and Enhancement has been identified as a growth regulator in Insurance by eminent panellists. The word NORMAL is redefined in terms of Need, Option, Reality, Methodology, Action Plan and Looking Ahead in the entire segment. The experts are indeed looking forward to a comprehensive approach to protect human capital in due course of time.

The technical session was graced by Hemant Buch, Chief – Pension & Group Schemes, Life Insurance Corporation of India; Vibha Agarwal – CEO & Principal Officer, SREI Insurance Broking; Subramanyam Brahmajosyula- Head Underwriting & Reinsurance, SBI General Insurance; Gisha George – Head Liability Underwriting & Product, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance. (UNI)