Insurance & Pension

In 2015, only about a fifth of Indians had any insurance, and the informal-sector workforce had almost no pension. Three Jan Suraksha schemes launched that year to fix this: PMJJBY (life cover), PMSBY (accident cover) and the Atal Pension Yojana. Priced at as little as ₹20 a year and auto-debited from Jan Dhan accounts, they crossed roughly 80 crore gross enrollments.

These schemes brought a basic safety net to families who had never had one. PMJJBY and PMSBY have paid out lakhs of claims to bereaved families, and the Atal Pension Yojana crossed 7.6 crore subscribers, building retirement savings for gig workers, farmers and daily-wagers. They are among the world's largest low-cost social-security programmes.

India is building a safety net in layers. At the base sit tiny, cheap government micro-schemes — a ₹2 lakh life cover and a ₹2 lakh accident cover for a few rupees a year, and the Atal Pension Yojana for informal workers. Above that is the commercial market — private and state insurers (led by LIC), and the market-linked National Pension System. The regulator, IRDAI, oversees insurers with a stated mission of 'insurance for all'.

Insurance still reaches only a thin slice of Indians — penetration is under 4% of GDP — and most people have little or no pension. The next step is deepening the cover: the regulator's goal of 'Insurance for All by 2047', simpler products sold through banks and digital apps, opening the sector to more foreign investment, and pulling India's vast informal workforce into formal pensions before an ageing population makes it urgent.

The next step is deepening the cover — moving from basic enrollment toward genuinely adequate protection, with higher payouts and better awareness of how to claim.

0 → ~80 crore gross Jan Suraksha enrollments (2015→2025). APY ~7.6 crore subscribers. Premiums ₹20–₹436/year; cover up to ₹2 lakh. Sources: Ministry of Finance.