Addressing media persons during the launch of its novel low cost, high volume, `Development Insurance Plan' here on Tuesday, HDFC Standard Life chairman Mr Deepak Parekh said the company is planning to roll out a pension fund latest by July. He said the company has approached the government for necessary clearances and would work out other modalities soon.

He said the company would also enter into the non-life insurance business by the end of the current year in tie up with a foreign insurance major. This would give HDFC the complete range of products and services in insurance and other related areas, he added. "We are in talks with several foreign insurance companies for the venture. We will launch the non-life insurance business before the end of current year", he said.

He said the company requires an additional investment to the tune of Rs 250 crore to Rs 300 crore to fund its business growth in the coming two to three years. He said this would be financed by way of equity brought in by both the partners as per the current equity ratio. In the Rs 163-crore equity HDFC holds 82 per cent and the remaining 18 per cent is held by the foreign partner. He said the company has targeted a business of 25,000 policies in its first year of operations and is hopeful of achieving it. HDFC Standard Life has already tied up with the Chennai-based Indian Bank to sell its products, he said adding, the JV would rope in a slew of other banks as well once the norms governing corporate agents is amended.

He said the Development Insurance Plan launched by the company is the first of its kind in the country and is targeted at mass market. In a first ever kind of marketing exercise, the company has tied up with a Tiruchirappalli-based women non governmental organisation (NGO), Lead (League for education and development) to sell the product. Lead has been working for the upliftment of poor and Dalit women in several districts of Tamil Nadu for the past 14 years and sets up Self Help Groups to organise the hapless women for working together for their development, education and hygiene.

He said this low cost life insurance product is developed specifically to meet the needs of the economically weaker sections of the society and carries an assurance of Rs 10,000 of which the premium is to the tune of Rs 95.