Even as financial capital of the country is busy counting losses, Indian insurance companies are waiting for a deluge of a different kind.With a massive claim of Rs 150 crore, Reliance Industries’ Patalganga unit has set the ball rolling for the claims made by India Inc which insurance companies now fear can go up to a record high of Rs 2,000 crore.Officials say the impact of the flood has been felt across businesses with plants, machineries, factories, godowns, stocks, vehicles and houses being affected. ‘‘From the initial claims, we are expecting at least a hit of Rs 2,000 crore in our bottomline due to heavy rains last week,’’ said a top official of a government-owned insurance company.‘‘We have sent surveyors to all the big plants. and we expect their reports within the few days,’’ he added. This record claim is excluding the Rs 900 crore claim made by ONGC for its Bombay High accident last week. ‘‘The industry would rather like to forget Mumbai of last week,’’ said an official with New India Assurance.Some of big companies who were hit by the heavy floods and made claims are: Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Energy’s Mumbai operations, B.K. Birla-owned Century Textiles’ Shahad unit, Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries’ Patalganga unit, Delhi-based Asahi Floatglass, Nusli Wadia’s Bombay Dyeing and Italian automobile firm Fiat India Ltd, which has a car manufacturing plant in Kurla.Fiat’s car plant in Kurla was producing 150 cars a day. With plant operations shut down, the car company is expected to make a claim of at least Rs 30-40 crore, say industry sources.The pharmaceutical industry — which has set up huge godowns in Bhiwandi —is also counting losses. Cipla said its stocks at its Bhiwandi godown has been completely damaged due to heavy rains and flooding. ‘‘These stocks have been adequately insured. We are in the process of assessing the damage and will lodge a claim with insurers,’’ the company said.Bombay Dyeing said operations at its DMT Plant at Patalganga has been suspended. ‘‘Owing to flooding of the company’s godowns at Kurla and Bhiwandi on July 26, cloth stocks stored therein have been damaged. These stocks have been adequately insured,’’ it said.Officials say the flood loss is immense as it is not only loss of assets like plants, machineries and equipments but also of drop in productivity and loss of lives. Given the high penetration of asset insurance in India Inc, insurable losses will be high though the claims will be lower from the home-owners.
