MUMBAI: State-owned insurance firm Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) announced on Monday that it has registered a strong 12.43 per cent in total premium income at Rs 1.45 lakh crore during the first nine months of the current financial year ended December 31, 2016. The number had stood at  Rs 1.29 lakh crore in the corresponding period of last year.

Acording to newly-appointed LIC Chairman V K Sharma, total assets also grew by 12.81 per cent to Rs 24.42 lakh crore from Rs 21.65 lakh crore a year ago. “Our performance is in line with our expectation. The Corporation has recorded healthy results based on its strong fundamentals and core values,” Sharma added.

While LIC’s gross total income grew 15.76 per cent to Rs 3.37 lakh crore during the same period compared to last year, it’s new business performance also saw arise of 40.11 per cent.

On the company’s expectations from new business for the entire financial year, Sharma said that it hoped to achieve Rs 35,000 crore from new business on an individual basis from the Rs 31,000 crore achieved so far.

Pension and group security business also grew by 27 per cent in the period under observation to Rs 51,004 crore, while under social security schemes, LIC has insured 5.81 crore lives.

Total policy payments also rose by 18.63 per cent to Rs 1.12 lakh crore from Rs 94,576 core a year ago. In the current fiscal, the LIC has added more than 44,000 agents to the rolls so far.