Lifetime Achievement Award
An insurer apart

Nasir A Choudhury's legendary career spans nearly five decades

Sohel Parvez
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His exit from the domain of writing and little magazine was near when he applied for the job of an insurer. But the acclaim he earned through this long career as an insurer sets him apart.

Back in 1958, Nasir A Choudhury, a young progressive cultural activist, had to say goodbye to his passionate world when he, under pressure from his family, got into Pakistan Insurance Corporation in Karachi as a management trainee.

Choudhury left the cultural movement, with which he was involved since his schooldays, and entered an arena where people's welfare is also a motto in terms of managing risk losses of citizens of newly-born Pakistan.

At that time insurance and its benefits were less known to people. So the young insurer had to face a difficult time.

Sometimes he thought of quitting his job, but an advanced training in London and Germany in early years of his job influenced him to change his mind.

Choudhury at last stayed on, and benefited the world of insurance.

“This training encouraged me very much. Insurance is one of the pillars of financial sectors of an economy and provides security to people in the event of losses,” says Choudhury, now managing director and chief executive of Green Delta Insurance Company.

“I also found that insurance has a value and people recognise it with respect.”
Now it is more than 50 years Choudhury has been in the insurance industry.

During his long career he contributed to the public and private sectors, tasting both sweet and sour.

He had to fight for changing the once negative attitudes of the society towards insurance professionals as well as for winning the recognition of the government for the insurance companies as financial institutions.

At long last, the industry has got its recognition as the government has passed the Insurance Act 2010 replacing the Insurance Act 1938.

The new law recognised the insurance companies as financial institutions and brought the sector under the Ministry of Finance from the Ministry of Commerce.

Under the law, an Insurance Regulatory Authority will act as a watchdog.

“The new law has given us proper recognition as financial institution. We've got it after a long struggle,” says Choudhury.

Along with other insurance professionals, he also joined hands to create awareness among people about the benefits of insurance and serve for development of the industry by hedging risks of people.

In doing so, since his entry into the private sector, he also campaigned for implanting corporate culture and norms in the sector and responding to the needs of the policyholders in the event of their losses caused by any accident.

Now he is recognised as an insurance personality, locally and internationally.

Choudhury served the public sector insurance for 25 years in the pre- and post-independence period.

On emergence of Bangladesh as an independent nation, he contributed a lot in reviving the state-run Sadharan Bima Corporation. He redesigned it and arranged reinsurance.

But his days in the state-owned corporation were not smooth as the nationalisation in 1973 put him in financial difficulty due to a pay-cut.

“I was suffering from financial problem and thinking of getting rid of insurance business,” Choudhury says.

In February 1983 he resigned voluntarily and took over the charge of Bangladesh office of a Hamburg-based firm Carlowitz & Co.

After a brief detachment, Choudhury returned to insurance industry in 1985 when insurance business is allowed in the private sector.

He along with friends staying abroad floated Green Delta Insurance Company in December 1985.

Today, Green Delta is one of the leading insurance companies and has secured over 11 percent stake of the Tk 1,258 crore gross premium income insurance sector in 2008.

The secret of his success, the insurance pioneer believes, is maintenance of corporate governance principles and creation of a service-oriented working force in his company.

He said the service provided by Green Delta has won public confidence, enabling the company to maintain its leading role in the sector.

“If anyone says don't give any business to Green Delta it will collapse like anything. But we're growing day by day because people have confidence in us as we cover their risks.”

“Our goal is to how fast we can extend service to our affected clients. When any claim matures it gives us the opportunity of helping the insured person,” he says.

He believes the insurance industry will continue to grow as mindset of the people is changing with the necessity to cover new risks emerging overtime.

Choudhury is 75. He is old in age, but still young in zeal and vigour in offering the benefits of insurance to people. Insurance is a world he has built over the years.