Discuss stewardship code for insurers in India.

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India decided to implement a code for stewardship for the insurers. The code is in the form of a set of principles, which the insurers would need to adopt. The code broadly requires the insurers to have a policy as regards their conduct at general meetings of the investee companies and the disclosures relating thereto. The highlights of the Code/Guidelines are as under: Insurers should formulate a policy on the discharge of their stewardship responsibilities and publicly disclose it. The policy should clearly define the stewardship responsibilities as identified by the insurer and how it intends to fulfill the same to enhance the wealth of its clients. Insurers should have a clear policy on how they manage conflicts of interest in fulfilling their stewardship responsibilities and publicly disclose it. Insurers should monitor their investee companies by mechanisms for regular monitoring in respect of their performance, leadership effectiveness, succession planning, corporate governance, reporting and other parameters they consider important. Annual Reporting to IRDA: The insurers must file a status report to the IRDA at a specified format on annual basis indicating the reasons/justifications for the deviation/non-compliance with the principles in the Guidelines.