"These are preliminary estimates and a clearer picture will emerge only after normalcy is restored, which may take another month. The commissioner of the agricultural ministry, the joint secretary, and the chief executive officer of GIC recently met the local people and business establishments in Bhubaneshwar to take stock of the situation and assess the damage," GIC managing director BD Bannerjee told The Financial Express.

Bannerjee said that the insurance cover provided to crops grown in the cyclone-affected region is expected to give rise to claims of Rs 100 crore."It is not easy to assess the claims since most cattle, livestock, shipping boats andtrawlers which were provided insurance cover by GIC or its subsidiaries have virtually disappeared without a trace. ``They have either been washed away by the floods or burnt-off under government instructions in order to control the outbreak of any epidemic. We have issued special instructions to our officers, which include certain enabling provisions and concessions, for assessing such claims," Bannerjee said.

A saving grace for the insurance company is that GIC has a prudent policy of reinsurance. The corporation is also protected by excess of loss treaties, which may mean that the actual loss to GIC may well be less at Rs 150-200 crore, Bannerjee said. This is despite the fact that GIC and its four subsidiaries had recently increased their `retention limit' on premia after taking into account their improved financial strength.

However, the claims-bill which will eventually have to come from GIC's kitty may well be as high as those arising from the catastrophe which struck the Gujarat and Andhra coastsrecently. The Gujarat cyclone gave rise to claims worth almost Rs 1,500 crore, nearly three times that expected from the Orissa cyclone.