FM meets pvt insurers ahead of budget

As part of his pre-budget parleys, finance minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday met the heads of  private sector insurance companies and discuss issues related to the much needed capital requirement, insurance penetration  and foreign direct investment in the sector.

Starved of funds, the insurance sector has been seeking to raise the FDI limit in the sector to 49 per cent from the current 26 per cent. Efforts were made during the UPA to introduce the bill in Parliament but could not be done due to opposition from the BJP.

"We are talking...it is pre-budget discussion," Minister of State for Finance Nirmala Sitharaman, who was also present at the hour-long meeting, told reporters when asked if the limit will be raised to 49 per cent in insurance sector.