Effective from 1st April 2025, salaried individuals earning up to ₹12.75 lakh can pay zero income tax under the new tax regime. Thus, the new income tax regime 2025 continues to simplify the taxation guidelines while offering lower slab rates and minimal exemptions. Currently, the new income tax regime under Section 115BAC is the default tax system in India. It offers concessional tax rates across income slabs while removing most deductions and exemptions, thereby making tax compliance smooth and more transparent.

Health insurance with maternity cover plays an important role in managing the financial aspects of pregnancy and childbirth. From routine prenatal consultations and diagnostic tests to delivery expenses and postnatal care, maternity-related medical costs can be significant.

A comprehensive maternity health insurance plan helps cover these expenses, reducing the financial burden on growing families while ensuring access to quality healthcare for both the mother and newborn.

Understanding how health insurance with maternity cover includes pre and post-natal expenses can help prospective parents choose the right policy and prepare for parenthood with greater confidence.

ULIP returns in 40 years range from 6%–8% CAGR for debt funds, 8%–10% for balanced funds, and 10%–15% for equity funds. With ₹10,000/month in an equity ULIP at 12% CAGR for 40 years, your corpus can exceed ₹11.85 crore, over 28× your total investment of ₹48 lakh.

A ULIP returns in 40 years is the apex form of long-term insurance-linked investing in India. From the age of 20 to the retirement age of 60, this utilizes the most powerful version of compound interest any Indian investor can find. Investing ₹10,000 per month at 12% CAGR across 480 months builds ₹11.85 crore. This corpus will be sufficient to provide a decent retirement and a meaningful financial inheritance to the next generation.

Over long periods, equity markets in India have historically delivered strong growth despite multiple market corrections. For example, the Sensex recorded an annualised return of around 13–14% between 1986 and 2025. During this period, ₹1 lakh invested decades ago would have grown significantly through the power of long-term compounding. Investors also experienced major market events along the way, including the dot-com crash, the 2008 financial crisis, and the COVID-19 market fall.

ULIP returns in 35 years range from 6% to 8% CAGR for debt funds, 8% to 10% for balanced funds, and 10% to 15% for equity funds. With a monthly SIP of ₹10,000 for 35 years in an equity-oriented ULIP at 12% CAGR, your corpus can exceed ₹6.50 crore. This is over 18 times your total investment of ₹42 lakh.

A 35-year ULIP is a long-term, insurance-linked investment available in India. ULIPs convert monthly savings into real retirement wealth. The impact of compounding over 35 years is significantly higher than that over a 25-year investment period.

If a 25-year-old starts today, the maturity of the ULIP return in 35 years will be at age 60. This aligns with the natural retirement age in India.

Equity investments in India have recorded a CAGR of around 12.7% for the Nifty 50 over the 35 years (from 1990 to 2025). This is the highest among ULIP investment windows.

Even after applying IRDAI-capped fund management charges of up to 1.35%, ULIP equity funds remain within this range. A ₹10,000 monthly investment at 12.7% CAGR for 35 years can generate nearly ₹7.5 crore. This equals a 17.9 times return on the ₹42 lakh invested.

Incurred Claim Ratio (ICR) is a key parameter demonstrating the financial stability of a health insurance company. It also shows the company’s capability to settle the claims of its clients. ICR helps indicate the insurer’s claims experience and financial balance. However, it should not be viewed as a direct measure of claim approval likelihood.

An optimum ICR usually specifies the potential of the insurer to manage claims in a financially stable condition. Having a detailed understanding of ICR helps policyholders evaluate insurers more effectively.