Centre to roll out cooperative insurance services for rural employment

The Centre will soon introduce Sahkari Insurance Services to strengthen the cooperative sector and expand insurance access across rural India, Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah said.

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Centre to roll out cooperative insurance services for rural employment

The initiative forms part of a broader strategy to triple the cooperative sector's contribution to GDP and raise active cooperative membership beyond 50 crore.

Under the plan, cooperative-based health, life, agriculture and accident insurance services will be offered nationwide. Shah said three young people in every village would be engaged as cooperative insurance ambassadors, creating employment while improving insurance outreach. He added that cooperative insurance, along with initiatives like Sahkari Taxi, would ensure earnings flow directly to members rather than intermediaries.

Speaking at the Earth Summit 2025-26 in Gandhinagar, Shah noted that the Centre has tripled allocations for rural development, agriculture and cooperation ministries since 2014. He also highlighted NABARD's Sahakar Sarathi initiative, under which multiple digital portals are integrating cooperative banks onto a unified platform for KYC, documentation and collections. Successful cooperative models from Gujarat will be replicated nationally to strengthen low-cost deposit mobilisation within the cooperative ecosystem.

Tier-II, Tier-III cities drive bulk of new health insurance policies

Tier-II and Tier-III cities have emerged as the primary growth engines of India's health insurance market, accounting for 62 per cent of all new health insurance policies sold over the past five years, according to an analysis of data by Policybazaar. Once considered secondary markets, these regions are now leading demand as affordability barriers ease and awareness improves. More than 40 per cent of Tier-III customers are opting for monthly EMI options, making comprehensive health cover more accessible.