A slew of pending reforms and delayed initiatives, including the much-touted Bima Sugam, await Ajay Seth as he takes charge as chairman of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) after a four-month vacancy. The government on Thursday appointed the former Department of Economic Affairs secretary to lead Irdai for a three-year term.
The post had been vacant since Debasish Panda demitted office in March 2025. Seth inherits several unfinished reforms initiated by his predecessor. Among Seth’s top priorities will be the rollout of Bima Trinity, Panda’s flagship initiative, which has faced repeated delays. The project aims to build an Amazon-like digital platform for insurance sales, servicing, and claims settlement. The three elements of Bima Trinity — Bima Sugam (a digital marketplace), Bima Vistaar (a composite insurance product), and Bima Vahaak (a women-led distribution model) — are at varying stages of rollout, which was originally planned for January 2023.
Reason behind extending project deadline
The transition to a risk-based capital regime and alignment with international accounting standards have been postponed due to industry unpreparedness, forcing Irdai to extend the implementation deadline to April 2027.
“Motor third-party premium rate correction has not taken place in four years, which is critical for the industry’s viability,” a top executive of a general insurer said, adding that Seth must address such pressing sectoral issues. Motor insurance premiums have seen muted growth due to slowing auto sales and the absence of price revisions in third-party premiums.
Irdai’s plan to build a dedicated entity
The executive also flagged Irdai’s plan to create a dedicated entity with the National Health Authority to standardise treatment costs, which remains stuck. “Unregulated healthcare costs are forcing insurers to frequently hike premiums, leading to customer dropouts,” the executive said. The National Health Claims Exchange (NHCX), envisioned as a digital platform to streamline claims processing, is also in limbo due to poor hospital participation.
Persuading insurers to go public will be another challenge. Irdai has been nudging legacy insurers to pursue public listings, but progress has been limited. Only six of the 32 general and standalone health insurers and four of the 27 life insurers, including LIC, are listed.
Seth also takes charge at a time when both the finance ministry and RBI have raised concerns over mis-selling, particularly with bundled products sold through bancassurance channels.
Balancing growth with policyholder protection, while pushing through long-pending reforms and digital transformation, will define Seth’s tenure at the regulator.