~BIZZ-WORLD~

Sign up for a new cell phone connection and get insured against accident. Yes! That’s the new scheme India’s state owned telecom operators MTNL and BSNL are presently working at.

The day A Raja took over as telecom minister, he asserted that rural India is his top priority. But he’s not just happy doing what his predecessor Maran too had been talking about, he wants to race ahead.

And what could be better than dolling out free insurance for every cellphone connection.

NDTV has learnt that a new BSNL or MTNL connection will get you accident cover of up to Rs 50,000. Both telcos are already talking to insurance companies and expect to roll out the scheme within a month.

Some of the top insurance companies NDTV spoke to are also in the fray. After all with over six million subscribers being added every month, it’s an easy cash cow even at discounted rates.

Analysts also expect private telecom operators like Reliance and Bharti to offer similar products, after all both private service providers have insurance arms that can be leveraged to beat competition. But for now it’s the subscriber who has every reason to celebrate.