The Indian government, through its Finance Ministry, has mandated all public sector undertaking (PSU) insurance companies to extend their full support to the victims of the tragic landslides in the state of Kerala. This directive was announced on Saturday, August 3, through a post on the social media platform X.
The devastating landslides in Wayanad, Kerala, have resulted in the tragic loss of 308 lives as of Friday, according to Kerala Health Minister Veena George, as reported by ANI. The five PSU insurance companies involved are Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), National Insurance, New India Assurance, Oriental Insurance, and United India Insurance.
The Finance Ministry aims to expedite the process of insurance claim payments for the affected individuals. To facilitate this, the ministry has instructed the insurance companies to actively reach out to policyholders in the affected districts of Wayanad, Palakkad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, and Thrissur. These are the areas where the majority of claims are being reported.
The insurance companies are utilizing various channels, including local newspapers, social media platforms, their websites, and SMS, to disseminate information and provide contact details for assistance. The Ministry of Finance highlighted these outreach efforts in its post on platform X.
The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has been granted access to the PM Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana to streamline the resolution of insurance claim processes and assist policyholders. The Ministry has also stated that the documentation required for claim processing has been significantly simplified to ensure a prompt disbursement of claim amounts.
To ensure efficient management of the claim process, the Ministry of Finance has instructed the General Insurance Council to oversee its operations. The Council will establish a dedicated portal for policyholders to track the status of their claims on a daily basis.
ANI has reported that as of the latest update, 215 bodies and 143 body parts have been recovered from the landslide site. This includes 98 males, 87 females, and 30 children. Approximately 78 naval personnel have been deployed to the affected locations in Kerala to conduct relief and rescue operations.
