(L to R)-Girija Subramaninan, CMD, New India Assurance(NIA), Krishna S Vatsa, member, National Disaster Management Authority and Parshant K Goyal, joint secretary, Department of Financial Services. at NIA’s 107^th foundation day celebration

“For protecting financially the missing middle, New India has declared 2025 as the year of the SME. NIA also has been the first insurer to open a state insurance plan office in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, which happens to be our designated state for the state insurance plan crafted by the regulator IRDAI” Girija Subramanian, CMD, New India Assurance

Mumbai: The government has asked public sector general insurance companies to  ramp up their Property portfolio and excel in in meeting customer expectations to increase insurance penetration in the country.

“Our insurance penetration is fairly low, particularly in the general insurance space where we are still at 1% of the GDP. The reason for that is our property insurance is lacking. While we are doing excellent work in motor segment, also doing very good work in the health segment, we need to focus more on property side of it. Asset insurance- maybe fire or property, houses, whatever kind of assets people have, should be one of the focus area for our companies,’’ said Parshant K Goyal, joint secretary, Department of Financial Services.

Goyal outlined government’s agenda for the PSU general insurance companies while speaking at 107^th foundation day celebration of New India Assurance(NIA), the country’s largest general insurance multinational with operations in 25 countries, on Wednesday.

“Meeting customer expectation should be a focus area for NIA. Although, we have seen a very good number of 99% plus of customer grievance settlement rate, that is not the end. We should be targeting and aiming at meeting expectation of each and every one, resolving each and every grievance which is coming to us. So, the more we respond to the customer’s need, the more trust they will have in our company and in the insurance sector as a whole,’’ exhorted Goyal.

“I would urge all the officers and all the branch managers, everyone, that they should become proactive. They should start moving out from their offices and  meet  the customers and find out, what they are thinking about their companies in general and about their products. Even, we should reach out who are not our policyholders. Let’s meet them and find out their needs, what do they want,’’ suggested Goyal.

This kind of  feedback will help the companies in shaping and developing their products in a better way as well as building that trust, he underlined.

“So, I hope in the coming days, we’ll see more and more traction on this, we’ll see more and more new and innovative customer-oriented products which are designed to the customer needs coming from NIA,’’ mentioned Goyal.

NIA not only is the market leader but is slowly has started gaining market share and going forward, this journey will continue. That means that country is again posing its trust on the experience of NIA. It will continue to grow and with NIA the insurance sector in the country will be growing, Goyal hoped.

There are many areas in which NIA is innovative, be it policy related to cyber risk or , surety bonds. Whenever and wherever government is thinking that a protection cover is needed , it falls back upon NIA which has always responded positively. The PSU insurer is  working on its digital transformation, added Goyal.

Addressing the event, Krishna S Vatsa, member, National Disaster Management Authority(NDMA), advocated it is time to transform the insurance ecosystem in India to bridge the protection gap, strengthen disaster resilience and extend security to all the sections of the society, especially the most vulnerable

Despite significant growth in the insurance sector, a large segment of our population remains unprotected, remains uninsured or underinsured. This includes not just individuals, but entire communities and asset classes. Rural households, informal workers, small businesses, women entrepreneurs, many of them still fall outside the insurance net, said Vatsa.

“And there are serious implications for them which we see day in and day out. When disasters strike, whether it is a flood or cyclone or pandemic, those without the insurance are pushed into deeper poverty,’’  stated Vatsa.

And it also has implications for the government finances, that the fiscal burden increases and the governments have to allocate larger resources for disaster assistance, added Krishna.

“Bridging this gap is not just an economic imperative, it is a moral and development one as well. So we must ask, why does this gap persist? One, of course there are demand side issues and there are supply side issues. On the demand side, people often don’t see value in insurance. On the supply side, we have the products that don’t speak to the needs of the people. They may be too complex, they may be too generic, or not available in the regions which are exposed to high risks,” Krishna explained.

This dual challenge calls for a new approach, one that is centered on understanding risk from the people’s perspective and not just the insurers’. The insurance industry definitely needs innovations. This is where the group insurance schemes, cooperatives and mutual insurance models come in by pooling risks and spreading premiums across many participants. These models reduce cost and increase reach, highlighted Krishna.

Participating in the event, Girija Subramanina, CMD, NIA, said for protecting financially the missing middle, New India has declared this year as the year of the SME.

NIA has been also the first insurer to open a state insurance plan office in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, which happens to be our designated state for the state insurance plan crafted by the regulator IRDAI, revealed Subramanian.

“We have experienced the changing expectations of our customers, the evolving regulatory landscape and the increasingly complex nature of risk, be it from climate change, geopolitical instability or cyber threats, whilst operating in an industry that is most misunderstood due to lack of awareness on the subject and uniqueness of the service that promises to cover uncertainty,” commented NIA chief.

“And today, yet again, we find ourselves at the cusp of a new era, the digital era, which promises to change the way insurance business is carried out. The industry is being reshaped in real time by data, automation, artificial intelligence and new customer behaviors in a market that caters to the most digital-savvy population of the world,” added Subramanian.

“ Since 1920, the insurance sector itself has evolved dramatically. We have journeyed from a tightly regulated market to liberalization, from paper-based servicing to AI-assisted claims, from nationalization to globalization. Through every major policy shift, social transformation and technological revolution, New India has stood strong, adapting, evolving and leading.”

NIA has grown from a GWP(gross writted premium) of Rs23,80,233 with 12 offices as on 31st March 1920, to Rs. 43,618 crores with around 1,700 offices globally as on 31st March 2025, recounted Subramanian.

“We are working hard to craft a future-ready, tech-driven, nimble-footed New India. A company that will respond to customer needs with speed, accuracy and empathy. A company where digital tools enhance, not replace, our human values. Our mission remains the same, to keep the customer at the center of whatever we do, whilst we go about protecting lives, livelihoods, assets and dreams.” assured Subramanian