Postal Life Insurance, the oldest life insurer in the country, is in the process of setting up a full-fledged investment division for generating optimal returns, according to the Department of Posts.
This move is aimed at ensuring compliance with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority’s (IRDA) regulations which disallow outsourcing of the investment function by an insurance company.
The Postal Life Insurance and Rural Postal Life Insurance corpus is currently being managed by SBI Funds Management Pvt Ltd and UTI Asset Management Company.
The assets managed under PLI and RPLI for the year ended 2011-12 were Rs 23,010.56 crore and Rs 9,141.44 crore, respectively.
The funds are deployed, among others in Central and State Government securities, housing, infrastructure, corporate bonds, and equity, as per the investment guidelines prescribed by IRDA.
Postal Life Insurance
Postal Life Insurance was introduced in 1884 as a welfare scheme for postal employees and then extended to the employees of the telegraph department in 1888. Over the years, it has grown from a few hundred policies in 1884 to 50.07 lakh policies as on March 31, 2012.
Postal Life Insurance covers the employees of Central and State Governments, Central and State public sector undertakings, universities, government-aided educational institutions, nationalised banks, and local bodies. It also extends insurance cover to the officers and staff of the defence services and para-military forces.
Rural Postal Life Insurance
Rural Postal Life Insurance was introduced in 1993. The prime objective of the scheme is to spread awareness as well as provide insurance cover to the rural population, especially the weaker sections and women workers. It had 135.47 lakhs policies as on March 31, 2012.