Kerala State Insurance Department

What Kerala State Insurance Department does

Kerala State Insurance Department (KSID) is a Commercial Department of the Government of Kerala, established in 1896 in the erstwhile Royal State of Travancore and declared a Commercial Department in 1979. It operates as a Composite Insurer under IRDA Registration No. 539, classified as an Exempted Insurer under Section 118(c) of the Insurance Act, 1938, with exemptions under Section 36 of the General Insurance Business Nationalisation (GIBN) Act, 1972, enabling it to underwrite both life and general insurance business exclusively for the state government ecosystem.

The department's core products are State Life Insurance (SLI), an endowment scheme combining savings with coverage at 1.5% of monthly emoluments and mandatory for all Kerala government employees entering service from August 19, 1976; the Group Insurance Scheme (GIS), providing ₹10,000/unit death cover plus a savings fund returned at retirement; Jeevanraksha (formerly GPAIS), a group personal accident scheme; and a general insurance portfolio covering fire, motor, marine, fidelity guarantee, banker's indemnity, employees' compensation, burglary, money, liability, and package policies. Its underlying technology is a government IT-supported platform integrated with the Kerala state treasury and Drawing and Disbursing Officer (DDO) salary deduction infrastructure, supplemented by 14 District Insurance Offices that provide face-to-face servicing across all Kerala districts from a Directorate headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram.

KSID operates an institutionally driven, sales-led go-to-market with no agents, brokers, or digital marketplaces. Premium collection is automatic via salary deduction; new entrants must enroll within one month of joining service. The revenue model is recurring subscription-based across all lines: SLI and GIS pull monthly premiums from government payrolls, general insurance generates annual institutional premiums from government departments, PSUs, universities, and co-operative bodies, and policy loans add managed-services interest income at 9% per annum. Distribution is exclusively direct through 343 staff across the Directorate and district offices (127 at HQ, 184 across districts).

Name

Kerala State Insurance Department

Legal name

Kerala State Insurance Department

Website

https://insurance.kerala.gov.in

Company type

Private

Founded year

1896

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kerala State Insurance Department (KSID) is a Government of Kerala Composite Insurer offering mandatory State Life Insurance, Group Insurance, and a comprehensive general insurance portfolio exclusively to Kerala state government employees and affiliated institutions, distributed via 14 district offices and integrated with salary deduction infrastructure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Sector Insurance

NAICS

Direct Life, Health, and Medical Insurance Carriers (52411), Direct Property and Casualty Insurance Carriers (524126)

SIC

Life Insurance (6311), Fire, Marine & Casualty Insurance (6331), Accident & Health Insurance (6321)

akta.pro primary industry

Participating (Dividend) Whole Life Insurance (FSAIABAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Basic Group Term Life (Employer-Paid) (FSAIADAA), Public Liability (Premises/Operations) (FSAJADAD)

Keywords

• Government life insurance
• Group insurance scheme
• Public sector insurance
• General insurance Kerala
• Endowment insurance policy

Headquarters

HQ city

Thiruvananthapuram

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices15 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. State Life Insurance (SLI) Premium Contributions: Monthly premiums collected from government employees via salary deduction. Premium rates are salary-linked (1.5% of total monthly emoluments, rounded to next ₹100), with minimum rates ranging from ₹150 to ₹450 per month depending on pay scale. Premium collection is mandatory for employees below age 50 entering service from August 19, 1976. The fund earns interest and pays out sum assured plus bonuses on maturity (age 55) or death.
2. Group Insurance Scheme (GIS) Subscription: Monthly subscription collected from state government employees at rates of ₹10 per unit (Groups A–D revised from January 1, 2022 per GO (P) No. 156/2021/Fin). Subscriptions fund both a Savings Fund (returned on retirement) and an Insurance Fund (₹10,000 per unit paid to nominees on death).
3. General Insurance Premiums: Premiums collected from government institutions, PSUs, universities, local bodies, and co-operative institutions for fire, motor, marine, fidelity guarantee, banker’s indemnity, employees’ compensation, burglary, money, liability, and package insurance products.
4. Group Personal Accident Insurance Scheme (Jeevanraksha / GPAIS): Premium-based personal accident coverage for government employees and organized workforce groups. Previously co-insured with a public sector company; now directly managed by KSID.
5. Policy Loan Interest Income: Loans against SLI policies are sanctioned up to 90% of surrender value at 9% per annum interest, repaid in monthly installments over up to 36 months. Interest income accrues to the State Life Insurance Fund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Kerala State Insurance Department provides mandatory and voluntary life, group, and general insurance products to Kerala state government employees, public sector undertakings, universities, local self-government institutions and co-operative bodies. Core offerings are State Life Insurance (SLI), Group Insurance Scheme (GIS), Jeevanraksha (Group Personal Accident Insurance), and a broad General Insurance portfolio including Fire, Motor, Marine, Fidelity Guarantee, Banker's Indemnity, Employees' Compensation, Burglary, Money, Liability and Package Policies, distributed through DDO/SDO salary deduction and 14 district offices.

Product overview

Kerala State Insurance Department operates as a Composite Insurer offering both Life and General Insurance products. The core life insurance portfolio includes State Life Insurance (SLI) - a mandatory endowment scheme for government employees with savings and coverage components, and Group Insurance Scheme (GIS) providing death-in-service cover and retirement benefits. General Insurance covers Fire (including KSID Griha Raksha and Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha policies), Motor (Own Damage and Third Party), Marine (Cargo and Hull), and Miscellaneous products including Fidelity Guarantee, Banker's Indemnity, Employees' Compensation, Jeevanraksha (Group Personal Accident), Burglary, Money Insurance, Liability, and Package Policies. The department serves government employees, public sector institutions, and commercial entities across Kerala through its 14 district offices.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• State Life Insurance (SLI) Endowment life insurance plan combining savings with insurance coverage, mandatory for Kerala government employees entering service on or after August 19, 1976. Premium calculated as 1.5% of monthly emoluments; offers high Sum Assured, attractive bonuses, government guarantee, loan facility and maturity at age 55.
• Group Insurance Scheme (GIS) Contributory group insurance scheme for Kerala state government employees providing dual benefit of insurance cover (₹10,000 per unit on death in service) and a Savings Fund accumulation returned on retirement. Priced in units of ₹10 with rates revised from January 1, 2022 per GO(P) No. 156/2021/Fin.
• Group Personal Accident Insurance (GPA) - Jeevanraksha Flagship group accident coverage scheme for government employees providing accidental death and disability benefits with five coverage variants (KSIDPA1–5).
• Fire Insurance

Quantifiable outcome

• SLI premium rates range from ₹150 to ₹450/month minimum (pay-scale-linked). Current effective formula: 1.5% of total emoluments rounded to next ₹100.
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves13 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• SBI Life Insurance: Government-affiliated (State Bank of India) life insurer with a strong group insurance and employer-sponsored business. Comparable to KSID on group life and savings-linked products for state-affiliated employees, though it operates nationally and on a much larger scale.
• ICICI Lombard General Insurance: Leading private general insurer with a significant government and PSU accounts portfolio. Directly comparable to KSID on fire, motor, and miscellaneous lines for institutional clients, and relevant as the private-sector benchmark for the products KSID is mandated to underwrite.
• HDFC Life Insurance: Large private life insurer competing for employer-sponsored group life and savings products in the government / PSU segment. Provides a benchmark for product features, digital servicing, and policy-loan terms against which KSID's SLI and GIS compete for employee mindshare.
• Bajaj Allianz General Insurance: Large private general insurer with a strong retail and commercial book. Comparable to KSID's general insurance lines for products like KSID Griha Raksha and KSID Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha, where private players offer competing home and small-business covers.

Direct peers

• United India Insurance Company: Public-sector general insurer with significant Kerala and South India penetration, competing for the same government institutional and PSU general insurance accounts that KSID underwrites via Section 36 GIBN exemptions.
• National Insurance Company: Public-sector general insurer, now a subsidiary of New India Assurance after the 2024 restructuring, serving government departments and PSUs with the same line of business as KSID's general insurance operations.
• Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC): India's government-owned national life insurer, the closest structural analogue to KSID's life insurance business. Like KSID, LIC underwrites group life and endowment-style products for government employees, but at a national scale and without a composite general-insurance license.
• Oriental Insurance Company: Public-sector general insurer historically dominant in government and PSU accounts, offering the same fire, motor, marine, and miscellaneous covers as KSID's general insurance portfolio. Comparable distribution via regional offices and direct institutional sales.
• New India Assurance Company: One of the four public-sector general insurers in India and the largest, with a similarly large portfolio of government institutional clients. Directly comparable to KSID's general insurance lines (fire, motor, marine, fidelity, liability) for state-owned assets and PSUs.

Others

• GIC Re (General Insurance Corporation of India): National reinsurer, government-owned, that sits upstream of KSID and the four PSU general insurers. Relevant as a counterparty and capacity provider, and the natural reinsurance backstop for KSID's larger fire, marine, and emerging climate-disaster schemes.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kerala-state-insurance-department

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles23 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Kerala State Insurance Department