Mandi Literacy and Development Committee Empowers Over 250,000 with Micro Insurance in Himachal

The Mandi Literacy and Public Development Committee has successfully enrolled around 250,000 people from four districts of Himachal Pradesh—Mandi, Kangra, Kullu, and Hamirpur—into micro insurance schemes. Recently, Sarita Devi from Bhadai village in Kullu district received a payout from the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) following the sudden demise of her husband, Khemraj. He had paid a quarterly premium of ₹662 for a micro-savings insurance plan worth ₹50,000. Tragically, he passed away just a month after purchasing the policy, and LIC paid ₹48,551 to Sarita Devi in return for her ₹662 premium.

In another case, Sher Singh, son of Lalchand from the village of Vishtbehar, had bought a ₹50,000 insurance policy with a monthly premium of ₹226. Five days later, he tragically died after falling from a roof. His father received a claim of ₹97,500 from LIC, significantly more than the premium paid.

Today, at the Kullu office, both families were presented with their claims by Bhim Singh, the General Secretary of the Mandi Literacy and Public Development Committee, and Mahendra Pal, the Assistant Manager. The General Secretary noted that in the past four months, the committee has facilitated death claims for 94 families. The committee aims to enroll 20,000 poor families in micro insurance this year. Kullu district currently leads in micro insurance enrollment for the current fiscal year.

The event was attended by Kullu coordinators Dhanwanti, Pushpa, Sumita, Salochana, Chandramani, Chetna, and R.K. Sharma.