STRIKES THREATENED IN INDIAN STATE

Public sector insurance employees in Indian state Orissa are threatening industrial action over plans for the foreign domestic investment (FDI) limit to be raised for private insurance companies, according to a report by Asia Pulse. “Insurance employees across the country are opposed to further raising the FDI cap from 26% to 49%,” said Dusmanta Das, president of the Insurance Employees Association (IEA). According to Das, the increase in the FDI cap could cause “serious damage to the Indian economy”. As an alternative, the public sector insurance workers are seeking the merger of public sector insurers, to put them on the same scale as the Life Insurance Corporation which dominates the life insurance sector. In contrast, the 15 private sector companies operating in the insurance sector have all failed to make a profit. “Since LIC and public sector general insurance companies enjoy public trust, a section of businessmen were trying to destabilise them by bringing more FDI money,” added Managobinda Barik, general secretary for the Cuttack division of the IEA. Any decision on industrial action, however, would be taken after the government has set a date for tabling the bill concerning the increase in FDI.