LIC panel's investment report in Jan

The three-member sub-committee formed to look into the details of investment made by the country’s largest life insurer, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), will give its report by January end.

A senior LIC executive said the three divisions of investment — operations, risk management and research and monitoring — is working on the report and will give it only by January. The members include executive directors from the three divisions.

The insurer had come under scrutiny after an actuarial deficit of Rs 14,000 crore surfaced. The losses had occurred in three guaranteed-return annuity policies — Jeevan Dhara, Jeevan Suraksha and Jeevan Akshay — launched in 1980 and 1990 with an assured return of 11-12 per cent. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) had, however, said it was a notional loss.

The probe committee includes a finance ministry official and two independent directors from the industry banks and financial institutions.

With the drop in interest rates, the actual yield on investments has fallen. Schemes launched under the brands-Jeevan Dhara, Jeevan Suraksha and Jeevan Akshay are, however, not suffering from any notional losses, the executive added.

During 2009-10, LIC’s net profit had gone up by 11 per cent to Rs 23,478 crore as against Rs 21,152 crore in the previous fiscal. The insurer said plans to invest nearly Rs 2 lakh crore in this financial year, which will include equity, debt and other instruments