Life Insurers Can Provide A Viable Pension Option
THE WEEK|January 24, 2021
T.C. Suseel Kumar, managing director, Life Insurance Corporation of India
Nachiket Kelkar
Life Insurers Can Provide A Viable Pension Option

IN AN EXCLUSIVE interview, T.C. Suseel Kumar, managing director of Life Insurance Corporation of India, talks about how the country’s largest life insurer navigated Covid-19, and how the pandemic brought a fundamental shift in people’s perception about insurance. Excerpts:

Q/Covid-19 led to a lot of disruption across businesses. Did LIC have to tweak plans because of the pandemic? What is your outlook for the next 12-18 months?

A/ The lockdown and the related restrictions, which had impacted the economic activities as a whole, had also cast a negative impact on the life insurance industry. With India unlocking gradually, we can see that demand resurgence is palpable in many sectors. Economic indicators allude to a steady recovery in almost all sectors, with some sectors shooting above their previous-year levels as well.

We have not scaled down our budgeted growth plan. Rather, we are optimistic about reaching them well in advance of the close of the financial year.

The pandemic has thrown light on the importance of life insurance and health insurance. With people across age groups being affected by the pandemic, they have begun to understand the importance of life insurance, and this may become an essential part of the new reality of our economy in the long term. Backed by rising income level, digitisation and the growing width of distribution channels, we expect the life insurance industry to grow at 10 to 12 per cent compounded annual growth rate in the next 12 to 18 months.

Q/ Data show that new life insurance premiums rose 32 per cent year-on-year in October. Among the various life insurance segments, where do you see strong growth?

Esta historia es de la edición January 24, 2021 de THE WEEK.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

Esta historia es de la edición January 24, 2021 de THE WEEK.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE THE WEEKVer todo
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
THE WEEK India

What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?

IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.

time-read
5 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
THE WEEK India

Trump and the crisis of liberalism

Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.

time-read
2 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
Men eye the woman's purse
THE WEEK India

Men eye the woman's purse

A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.

time-read
2 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
When trees hold hands
THE WEEK India

When trees hold hands

A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges

time-read
3 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
Ms Gee & Gen Z
THE WEEK India

Ms Gee & Gen Z

The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing

time-read
5 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
THE WEEK India

Vikram Seth-a suitable man

Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.

time-read
2 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
Superman bites the dust
THE WEEK India

Superman bites the dust

When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.

time-read
3 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
THE WEEK India

OLD MAN AND THE SEA

Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port

time-read
4 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE WEEK India

Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets

THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.

time-read
3 minutos  |
December 08, 2024
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
THE WEEK India

Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay

AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.

time-read
2 minutos  |
December 08, 2024