Bharat Sookshma, Laghu Udyam Suraksha and Griha Raksha
Standard fire products for homes and small businesses, with softer average and wider perils than the SFSP.
In January 2021 IRDAI issued guidelines for three standard fire and allied perils products: Bharat Griha Raksha for homes, Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha for micro businesses, and Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha for small businesses. Every insurer sold the same cover under its own name ("National Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha Policy" and so on), so a kirana owner or a homeowner could compare price without decoding different wordings.
The 2024 master circular on general insurance lists both 2021 guidelines among the circulars it repeals, as part of the move to principle-based product rules. The products have not disappeared: insurers still publish and sell them, now as their own filed products rather than under a mandate. The IC-11 courseware (Revised Edition 2023) describes them as the mandated standard products; read that as history, and the cover itself as current.
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The Three Products Side by Side
Thresholds and features as stated in one public sector insurer's current policy wordings.
Who it is for
Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha
Businesses with total value at risk at one location up to ₹5 crore
Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha
Businesses with total value at risk at one location above ₹5 crore and up to ₹50 crore
Bharat Griha Raksha
Homes: building and/or contents
Basis of sum insured
Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha
Reinstatement value for building, plant, furniture and contents; stocks at landed, input or manufacturing cost
Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha
Same as Sookshma
Bharat Griha Raksha
Building at cost of construction; contents at replacement
Underinsurance
Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha
Waived up to 15%: average bites only if the sum insured is below 85% of value
Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha
Same 15% waiver
Bharat Griha Raksha
Does not apply at all
Value moves out of range
Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha
Replaced by the applicable policy at expiry if value at risk crosses ₹5 crore
Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha
Replaced at expiry if value crosses ₹50 crore or falls below ₹5 crore
Bharat Griha Raksha
Not applicable
| Feature | Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha | Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha | Bharat Griha Raksha |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Businesses with total value at risk at one location up to ₹5 crore | Businesses with total value at risk at one location above ₹5 crore and up to ₹50 crore | Homes: building and/or contents |
| Basis of sum insured | Reinstatement value for building, plant, furniture and contents; stocks at landed, input or manufacturing cost | Same as Sookshma | Building at cost of construction; contents at replacement |
| Underinsurance | Waived up to 15%: average bites only if the sum insured is below 85% of value | Same 15% waiver | Does not apply at all |
| Value moves out of range | Replaced by the applicable policy at expiry if value at risk crosses ₹5 crore | Replaced at expiry if value crosses ₹50 crore or falls below ₹5 crore | Not applicable |
What the Bharat Products Cover That the SFSP Does Not
- check_circleEarthquake, volcanic eruption and other convulsions of nature, as a standard insured event.
- check_circleFire including the insured's goods catching fire by their own fermentation, natural heating or spontaneous combustion.
- check_circleBush fire, forest fire and jungle fire, and impact damage of any kind (including falling trees and walls), not just third-party vehicles.
- check_circleTerrorism, listed as an insured event on the terms of an attached terrorism clause.
- check_circleIn-built covers at no extra premium for the business products: additions and alterations during the year (up to 15%, if notified within seven days), stocks at several locations on a floater basis, temporary removal of stocks for processing, specified contents such as money and records, start-up expenses, professional fees up to 5% of the claim and debris removal up to 2%.
Bharat Griha Raksha in Four Terms
- No underinsurance
- If the sum insured, worked out from what the homeowner declared, is below the actual value, the difference does not reduce the claim.
- Automatic escalation
- The building sum insured rises by 10% a year on each policy anniversary for multi-year policies (up to 100% of the original), and by 1/365th of 10% a day for annual policies, without extra premium.
- Built-in contents cover
- General contents are covered for 20% of the building sum insured, up to ₹10 lakh, without listing them, if both building and contents covers are taken.
- Loss of rent and alternative accommodation
- Paid while the home is unfit to live in after an insured event, for up to three years, once the building claim is accepted.
Quick practice on risk inspection and hazards. No signup.
Check the Wording, Not the Brochure
Since the 2021 guidelines were repealed, an insurer may file its own variant (some now sell "Plus" or "Flexi" versions). The figures above come from one insurer's live wordings and match the original standard product; another insurer's variant can differ. For the exam, learn the ₹5 crore and ₹50 crore bands and the 15% waiver.
How IC-11 Tests This
Expect a value at risk and a question on which product fits (₹3 crore shop: Sookshma; ₹20 crore factory: Laghu), the 15% underinsurance waiver, and "which policy does not apply average at all" (Griha Raksha). The trap is reading the ₹5 crore band as turnover or as total value across all branches. It is the value at risk at one location.
FAQs
What is Bharat Sookshma Udyam Suraksha?expand_more
A standard fire and allied perils policy for micro businesses whose total value at risk at one location does not exceed ₹5 crore. It covers building, plant, contents and stocks, includes earthquake and terrorism as insured events, and waives underinsurance up to 15%.
What is the difference between Bharat Sookshma and Bharat Laghu Udyam Suraksha?expand_more
The size band. Sookshma is for value at risk at one location up to ₹5 crore; Laghu is for above ₹5 crore and up to ₹50 crore. Cover and the 15% underinsurance waiver are broadly the same.
Is average applied in Bharat Griha Raksha?expand_more
No. Underinsurance does not apply to Bharat Griha Raksha. The building sum insured also rises automatically each year to keep pace with construction costs.
Are the Bharat products still mandatory in 2026?expand_more
The January 2021 guidelines that introduced them are listed as repealed in IRDAI's 2024 master circular on general insurance. Insurers continue to sell them as their own filed products, so the cover is current even though the mandate is gone.
Next steps
- SFSParrow_forward
- Condition of Averagearrow_forward
- Product Approvalarrow_forward
- Reinstatement Valuearrow_forward
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