PSU insurers to extend all hands to Kerala landslide victims, says finance ministry

The Ministry Central government has mandated all public sector undertaking (PSU) insurance companies to extend all hands in supporting the victims of the tragic landslides in the state of Kerala, according to a post on the social media platform X from the finance ministry on Saturday, August 3.

A devastating landslide in Wayanad, Kerala has taken the lives of 308 as of Friday, as per Kerala Health Minister Veena George, reported ANI.

The five public sector undertaking (PSU) insurance companies are Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), National Insurance, New India Assurance, Oriental Insurance, and United India Insurance. The Finance Ministry wants to expedite the process of claims in the insurance payments, as per the post.

The ministry also said that the insurance providers have initiated efforts to reach out and inform the policyholders to provide their contact details in the districts of Wayanad, Palakkad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, and Thrissur. These are the places from where the companies have received most of the claims, as per the post.

The companies have used channels like local newspapers, social media, company websites, SMS, etc., to spread the information to the people.

"The insurance companies have initiated efforts for reaching out to their policyholders through various channels (local newspapers, social media, company websites, SMS, etc) to provide the contact details for assistance in the districts of Wayanad, Palakkad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, and Thrissur, where a significant number of claims are being reported," said the Ministry of Finance in the post on platform X.

The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has been granted access to PM Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana to swift resolution of the insurance claim processes to help out the policyholders, according to the Ministry.

“The documentation required for processing of claims has been relaxed comprehensively to ensure speedy dispersal of the claim amount,” said the Ministry.

The Ministry of Finance has also instructed the General Insurance Council to look after the working of the insurance claiming process, to ensure that the claims are resolved swiftly. They will host a portal for the policyholders to report their claim status daily, as per the post.

ANI reported the latest update of the incident in Kerala where to date, 215 bodies and 143 body parts have been recovered. This includes 98 males, 87 females and 30 children. Close to 78 naval personnel have been assigned to the affected locations in Kerala to conduct relief and rescue operations.