Three attacks later, one-fourth of bullion traders still uninsured

22-Jul-2011
Source : The Financial Express

Even after the recent serial terror blasts that ripped through Mumbai’s Zaveri Bazaar and Opera House last week, around a fourth of the traders at the city’s premier bullion and diamond hubs continue to remain uninsured.
“It has been observed that over 20-25 per cent bullion traders in both Zaveri Bazaar and Opera House are still uninsured. We have already cautioned our bullion traders and associates to insure themselves before stepping into this business,” said Bombay Bullion Association (BBA) president Prithviraj Kothari.
Zaveri Bazaar, which has been targeted by the terrorists thrice, had at least 5,000 bullion and jewellery shops and offices. After the earlier blasts, some of them had shifted to the Opera House area to avoid the crowds and congestion, but have ignored the need to secure their future. Kothari believes that mere shifting cannot substitute the act of getting oneself insured: “Transferring any unit from one place to another is not the solution at all. Tragedy can happen anywhere, but one should not risk his life and property. So I think getting oneself insured is a must for every one.”
This fact was corroborated by the spokesman of the Life Insurance Corporation: “I’m quite surprised over the number of claims that we have come across in this tragedy. What concerns me is that people are still unaware of this kind of situation. We were expecting maximum claims, but only got 2 out of 20 claims which are very small in amount (around Rs 5 lakh) and we have already settled them.”
Bharat Shah, a prominent diamond trader attested to the general laxity on the matter: “The Opera House area, which accommodates over 2,000 bullion traders, is not 100 per cent insured, be it individual, auto, property or anything possessed by the trader. Most of the diamond merchants buy insurance, considering the high value of their raw materials. For instance, insurance for diamonds is available, but it is too expensive and out of bounds for the smaller traders.”
At the end of a normal trading day, brokers deposit the diamonds in the four or five safety vaults in the area.