Capital infusion in state-owned insurers was necessary, says Bhargav Dasgupta

By Bhargav Dasgupta

The budget attempts a balancing act of promoting long term growth while maintaining fiscal prudence given the constraints. It pursues long-term measures towards infrastructure development, higher education, technology adoption etc. which is positive. For the non-life insurance industry, higher spends on infrastructure i.e. roads, airports, water pipeline networks will drive demand for fire and engineering covers. Health insurance coverage should get a boost given the focus on expanding the hospital network for Ayushman Bharat. The capital infusion in the state-owned insurers was necessary and will hopefully encourage better underwriting discipline in the future.

(The writer is the MD & CEO, ICICI Lombard General Insurance)