A comprehensive accident/life insurance scheme for school students that was announced by Minister for Finance K.N. Balagopal in the State Budget on Thursday will likely be rolled out this year itself.
Forty-three lakh students from Classes I to XII in government, aided, and government-approved schools following the State syllabus will be covered by the scheme, for which ₹15 crore has been earmarked.
Kerala’s initiative for student safety and welfare will be a model for the country, Minister for General Education V. Sivankutty has said.
No premium will have to be paid by the students or parents to maintain insurance coverage. The government will pay the full annual premium of ₹30 plus GST for each student.
In the event of death of a student in an accident, the family will be given a one-time payment of ₹3 lakh and up to ₹3 lakh will be provided if a student becomes fully disabled.
Treatment expenses
If a student is admitted to hospital following an accident, treatment expenses up to ₹75,000 will be met under the scheme.
Outpatient expenses up to ₹5,000 will be available in the event a student sustains fractures, electric shock, burns, animal or snake bites, and food poisoning.
The Kerala State Insurance department and United India Insurance Company Ltd. together will implement the scheme. Claims will be settled quickly and quality of services ensured since government agencies would monitor the scheme implementation.
Mr. Sivankutty said the General Education department had been working on the scheme, perhaps the first in the country with such a wide student coverage, for the past six months. The department first tried the CSR route and appealed to banks for support but to no avail. It then turned to government-owned insurance companies and invited proposals, which were handed over to the Minister for Finance, who was also in charge of the State Insurance department. Multiple rounds of discussions were held to thrash out the details. Mr. Sivankutty said the scheme was the result of the government’s position that treatment to no student should hit a hurdle owing to financial difficulties.
Published – January 30, 2026 08:14 pm IST
