The Gazetteers Department

Although the beginning of insurance in India was made in 1870 when some private companies were formed, the real expansion of the business took place during the time of the swadeshi movement. For long, however, the life insurance business remained in the hands of foreign companies. It was only in the wake of the freedom movement and during the Second World War when inflationary pressures tended to swell, the volume of business increased and new companies came up. With a view, therefore, to keeping a close watch over the management, investments of funds and expenditure of insurance companies, the Government established a department of insurance and enacted the Insurance Act of 1938.

The district suffered from the general economic backwardness of the Marathwada region during the rule of the ex-State of Hyderabad. Insurance was practically non-existent till the establishment of the Life Insurance Corporation of India in 1956, by a special ordinance which transferred the management and control of life insurance business in India, including the foreign business of Indian insurers and the Indian business of foreign insurers to the Central Government.

Under the new organisational and administrative set-up of the Life Insurance Corporation, Bhir district is placed under the territorial jurisdiction of the Poona division of the Western Zone along with Aurangabad district. The total territory covered by the branch consists of Aurangabad and Bhir districts. The total number of insurance agents in the branch was 164 by the close of 1957, 178 by the end of the following year and 309 by the end of 1959.

The following table gives the details about the insurance business done in Bhir district:—

TABLE No. 10

Insurance Business in Bhir District (from 1-9-56 to 30-4-60)

Period	Proposed		Completed
Period	Number of proposals	Sum proposed	Number of policies	Sum assured
(1)	(2)	(3)	(4)	(5)
		Rs.		Rs.
1-9-1956 to 31-12-1956	*697	22,78,950	437	Rs.14,54,000
Year 1957
January	77	2,33,500	--	--
February	118	4,40,500	106	3,52,500
March	167	7,09,250	139	4,29,000
April	170	6 96,000	39	1,71,000
May	288	10 84 000	152	5 73 000
June	212	6 27 500	93	4,25,000
July	194	6,74 000	161	5, 62 000
August	300	12,23,000	281	10 35 500
September	404	12,95,000	202	7,89,000
October	377	10,37,000	378	13,43,500
November	317	9 30 000	31?	10,03,500
December	702	21,87,000	841	25,88,200
Total for 1957.	3,326	1,11,37,750	2,706	92,72,200
Year 1958*
January	25	46,000	1	6,000
February	189	5,27,000	58	1,96,000
March	254	6,25,500	90	2,33,000
April	252	6,79,250	121	3,15,500
May	192	5,78,500	144	3,94,500
June	176	4,75,550	105	2,93,500
July	260	7,38,500	121	3,11,500
August	353	11,61,525	139	4,14,500
September	348	12,28,475	154	5,89,500
October	354	12,30,500	326	10,05,000
November	484	17,43,000	266	8,91,500
December	938	29,14,000	1,333	46,40,500
Total for 1958	3,955	1,22,99,700	3,013	96,83,300
Year I959†
January	196	Rs.4,63,250	1	Rs.11,000
February	161	4,88,000	--	--
March	192	5,86,000	57	1,49,500
April	233	7,30,900	107	3,30,000
May	234	6,56,000	83	2,20,500
June	213	5,85,500	111	3,37,500
July	138	4,07,500	104	2,99,500
August	163	5,47,000	171	5,43,500
September	199	6,85,000	122	5,80,000
October	268	9,51,000	140	4,76,500
November	360	11,05,250	109	2,97,000
December	909	31,40,000	781	29,83,750
Total for 1959	3,246	1,04,02,000	2,188	73,36,250
Year 1960
January	37	1,29,500	6	26,000
February	83	2,80,500	17	58,000
March	105	3,42,000	65	2,24,000
April	262	8,22,000	93	3,16,500
Total for 1960 for the period from 1-1-60 to 30-4-60.	487	15,74,000	181	6,24,500

*These figures include business of 2 more districts, viz., Nanded and Parbhani.

Despite the rapid increase in life insurance business in the country in recent years, the per capita insurance in Bhir district is very low and compares very unfavourably with that of other districts of Maharashtra. The reasons for this low per capita insurance are the economic backwardness of the district, high percentage of illiteracy and the low insurance consciousness among the people.