KATHMANDU: The Office of the Auditor General, an organization that audits the transactions of government agencies, has been repeatedly saying that it is the responsibility of the insurance companies to settle the claims of coronavirus insurance. However, it is still not certain whether the insured will get paid due to confusion regarding who shall pay the amount promised by the government.

The people in general infected with the novel corona virus (Covid-19) are liable to receive about Rs 11.5 billion in insurance claims. However, the process of settling the claims has become uncertain as the OAG in its report pointed out that it is not appropriate for the government to pay such a large amount on the basis of a secretary-level decision.

According to the report prepared by the Office of the Auditor General, as of mid-June 2079, the government has released Rs 6.10 billion for coronavirus insurance while it is yet to settle claims worth Rs 11.34 billion.

The report has also instructed the Nepal Insurance Authority to get the payment done by the insurance companies.

Surya Prasad Silwal, chairman of the authority, said that the government cannot shy away from its responsibility. He argued that the coronavirus insurance policy was issued with the consent of the government.

"I have not read what the Office of the Auditor General has written in its report," he said, "But the government cannot get away from the responsibility to bear the cost of coronavirus insurance."

The government has not yet made a formal decision not to bear the responsibility of settling the claims of coronavirus insurance. Last October, the government has released Rs 1 billion for settling the claims. After that, no additional amount has been released.

The Office of the Auditor General has mentioned in its audit report of the last fiscal year that the decision of the Government of Nepal to bear the unlimited liability of coronavirus insurance is not appropriate.

Insurance companies have also prepared to file a case against the government for the delay in releasing the payments as promised.

Immediately after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the then Insurance Board (currently Nepal Insurance Authority) issued instructions to the insurance companies to sell coronavirus insurance in March 2076. Following the instruction, the non-life insurance companies started selling insurance policies for which the government has promised to reimburse the amount.

As the number of infected people increased, the companies tried to stop issuing the insurance policy within three months. However, since the Ministry of Finance assured the insurers by announcing that that the government would provide the insurance amount through the budget, the insurance companies gave continuity to the scheme. However, the government has been dilly-dallying in releasing the pledged amount.