How this GP on Bengaluru outskirts got everyone insured
Bengaluru: Hidden away behind the bustling tech hub of Electronics City, this quiet village is known for its hardworking people, thriving in agriculture, floriculture and dairy farming. But now, it is making headlines as the first gram panchayat in the state to ensure every single eligible resident is fully insured!
Welcome to Marasur, a nondescript village located 8km away from Chandapura (off the Bengaluru-Hosur highway), on Anekal Road. The Marasur gram panchayat (GP) comprises eight villages — Marasur, Naganayakanahalli, Madivala, Bandapura, Agrahara, Shettihalli, Adesonatti and Haleooru. It has a population of 15,531, with 9,319 of them (aged 18-70 years) eligible for life insurance.
The GP tied up with Christ University to undertake an insurance coverage survey in the villages and found that nearly 80% of the population had enrolled themselves for various insurance schemes and that 1,877 people had no insurance coverage. To onboard the latter, the GP conducted a dedicated camp to educate the people to enrol themselves in any of the two schemes — Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana or Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana — that suited them. Bengaluru Urban zilla panchayat CEO Latha Kumari KS recently announced that the GP was fully insured, making it the first in the state.
GP president Ramesh Reddy C told the TOI team which visited the village Friday: “We realised that not everyone has life insurance or accident insurance coverage. We wanted everyone to be covered. We are happy that all of us are now covered. This way, we have also ensured that govt schemes actually reach the beneficiaries at the grassroots.”
The concept of providing insurance to all eligible residents stemmed from a scheme called `Anthimanamana’ rolled out by the GP. Under this, families who lost a member would receive financial aid of Rs 10,000 from the panchayat to help with funeral expenses. Marasur PDO Murali D said: “The idea to extend insurance coverage to all citizens had been a long-standing goal. Each time we handed over a Rs 10,000 cheque to a grieving family, we saw firsthand the financial struggles they faced. The loss of a breadwinner left them in dire straits. This experience motivated us to implement an insurance scheme that would provide financial support in the event of death or an accident.”
MV Prakash Reddy, a resident of Marasur, told TOI, “I didn’t know there was such a scheme… even if I knew about these, I wouldn’t have gone to get it as these would require a lot of documentation. However, the camp organised by the panchayat helped me get the insurance cover easily.”
A group of four women — Saraswathamma A, Narayanamma C, Radha M and Rashmi N — said they got to know about these schemes through the panchayat and all of their families are covered under govt insurance.
Welcome to Marasur, a nondescript village located 8km away from Chandapura (off the Bengaluru-Hosur highway), on Anekal Road. The Marasur gram panchayat (GP) comprises eight villages — Marasur, Naganayakanahalli, Madivala, Bandapura, Agrahara, Shettihalli, Adesonatti and Haleooru. It has a population of 15,531, with 9,319 of them (aged 18-70 years) eligible for life insurance.
The GP tied up with Christ University to undertake an insurance coverage survey in the villages and found that nearly 80% of the population had enrolled themselves for various insurance schemes and that 1,877 people had no insurance coverage. To onboard the latter, the GP conducted a dedicated camp to educate the people to enrol themselves in any of the two schemes — Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana or Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana — that suited them. Bengaluru Urban zilla panchayat CEO Latha Kumari KS recently announced that the GP was fully insured, making it the first in the state.
GP president Ramesh Reddy C told the TOI team which visited the village Friday: “We realised that not everyone has life insurance or accident insurance coverage. We wanted everyone to be covered. We are happy that all of us are now covered. This way, we have also ensured that govt schemes actually reach the beneficiaries at the grassroots.”
The concept of providing insurance to all eligible residents stemmed from a scheme called `Anthimanamana’ rolled out by the GP. Under this, families who lost a member would receive financial aid of Rs 10,000 from the panchayat to help with funeral expenses. Marasur PDO Murali D said: “The idea to extend insurance coverage to all citizens had been a long-standing goal. Each time we handed over a Rs 10,000 cheque to a grieving family, we saw firsthand the financial struggles they faced. The loss of a breadwinner left them in dire straits. This experience motivated us to implement an insurance scheme that would provide financial support in the event of death or an accident.”
MV Prakash Reddy, a resident of Marasur, told TOI, “I didn’t know there was such a scheme… even if I knew about these, I wouldn’t have gone to get it as these would require a lot of documentation. However, the camp organised by the panchayat helped me get the insurance cover easily.”
A group of four women — Saraswathamma A, Narayanamma C, Radha M and Rashmi N — said they got to know about these schemes through the panchayat and all of their families are covered under govt insurance.
