CropInsurers of India may face US$16.4-mln loss

India General insurers may face claims ranging up to US$16.4 million arising from massive crop damage, following hailstorms in the western state of Maharashtra earlier this month.”As per our initial estimates, claims may be to the tune of INR850-1,000 million from this event,” the general manager of the state-run Agriculture Insurance Company of India (AIC), Mr Rajeev Chaudhary, told the Press Trust of India.He revealed that the total premium collected from Maharashtra each year by the general insurance industry from weather and crop insurance is around INR730 million.The public-sector insurer, which specialises in providing weather and crop insurance, offers cover for 10 crops, three of which are cereals. The rest are horticultural  produce like orange, grape, guava, pomegranate and cashew.”Covers for horticultural crops like cashew, guava and grape are covered under the crop insurance scheme till 15 February. So, claims from these crops will not be much. We are now assessing the damage for the rest of the crops,” Mr Chaudhary said.