Bima Sugam | 25 Sep 2023

Source: IE

Why in News?

Recently, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has formed a steering committee to act as the apex decision-making body for the creation of its ambitious ‘Bima Sugam’ online platform.

• IRDAI says Bima Sugam is an electronic marketplace protocol which would universalise and democratize insurance. This protocol will be connected with India Stack.

What is Bima Sugam?

• About:
  • It’s an online platform where customers can choose a suitable scheme from multiple options given by various companies.
  • All insurance requirements, including those for life, health, and general insurance (including motor and travel) will be met by Bima Sugam.
• Features:
  • It will simplify and digitize the insurance marketplace— right from buying policies, to renewals, claim settlement, and agent and policy portability.
  • It will assist consumers with all insurance related queries.
• Role:
  • The proposed platform would act as a single window for the policyholder to manage his/her insurance coverage.
  • It will provide end-to-end solutions for customers’ insurance needs i.e., purchase, service, and settlement.
• Utility:
  • It will facilitate insurance companies to access the validated and authentic data from various touch points on a real-time basis.
  • The platform will interface for the intermediaries and agents to sell policies and provide services to policyholders, among others, and reduce paperwork.
• Stakeholders:
  • Life insurance and general insurance companies will own a 47.5% stake each, while brokers and agent bodies will own 2.5% each in Bima Sugam Platform.

What is India Stack?

• About:
  • India Stack is a set of APIs (Application programming interface) that allows governments, businesses, startups and developers to utilize a unique digital Infrastructure to solve India’s hard problems towards presence-less, paperless, and cashless service delivery.
  • It aims to unlock the economic primitives of identity, data, and payments at population scale.
• Features:
  • Digital transactions through India Stack often have lower transaction costs compared to traditional methods. This benefits businesses, consumers, and the government by reducing the cost of conducting various transactions.
  • Bridging the wealth gaps and building an efficient and resilient digital economy that drives economic growth and social development.
• Components:
  • The key components of INDIA STACK include Aadhaar (unique biometric-based identification system), Unified Payments Interface (UPI) for instant digital payments, and Digital Locker for secure storage of personal documents.