India’s bank deposit insurance (DICGC) — how much of your deposit is protected?
The chart shows the DICGC deposit-insurance coverage limit (Rs per depositor per bank) at each revision since 1962. The table below carries the same figures so the page is readable without JavaScript — for accessibility and AI answer engines.
DICGC deposit-insurance coverage limit over time
| Effective year | Coverage limit | Note |
| 1962 | Rs 1,500 | Deposit insurance introduced in India (DICGC's predecessor) |
| 1968 | Rs 5,000 | Limit raised as the scheme widened to more banks |
| 1970 | Rs 10,000 | DICGC formed (1971) by merging deposit insurance & credit guarantee |
| 1976 | Rs 20,000 | Coverage limit doubled |
| 1980 | Rs 30,000 | Coverage limit raised again |
| 1993 | Rs 1,00,000 | Limit raised to Rs 1 lakh (effective 1 May 1993) — held for 27 years |
| 2020 | Rs 5,00,000 | Limit raised five-fold to Rs 5 lakh (effective 4 Feb 2020) |
The coverage limit is per depositor per bank, covering principal and interest together, across all accounts held in the same right and capacity at one bank. The dates are the statutory record; for the exact notification text see the source linked below.
Key DICGC metrics (current, approximate)
A snapshot of how far the cover reaches and how the scheme is funded. All values are rounded and approximate and are not in the BankPulse Verified-numbers ledger.
| Metric | Value | What it means |
| Coverage limit | Rs 5,00,000 | Per depositor per bank, principal + interest combined (since 4 Feb 2020) |
| Fully protected accounts | ~97.8% | Share of total deposit accounts fully covered by the Rs 5 lakh limit |
| Insured deposits | ~Rs 94 lakh crore | Total deposits protected across all insured banks |
| Insured-to-assessable ratio | ~43% | Insured deposits as a share of total assessable deposits |
| Deposit-insurance premium | 12 paise per Rs 100 | Annual premium banks pay on assessable deposits (flat rate) |
| Insured banks | ~1,990 | All commercial banks plus eligible cooperative banks |
| Reserve ratio (DIF) | ~2.1% | Deposit Insurance Fund as a share of insured deposits |
What it means for bankers and depositors
Deposit insurance is the quiet backstop of public confidence in banking. The Rs 5 lakh cover, in force since February 2020, means that in the event an insured bank fails or its licence is cancelled, each depositor is paid up to Rs 5,00,000 by the DICGC — and because the great majority of accounts hold less than that, roughly 97.8% of accounts are fully protected. By value the ratio is lower (~43% of assessable deposits) because large balances above the cap are only partly covered. For a banker, the scheme is a cost of doing business — a flat 12 paise per Rs 100 premium on assessable deposits, paid by the bank, that funds the Deposit Insurance Fund (a reserve ratio of about 2.1% of insured deposits). The Rs 1 lakh limit had stood unchanged for 27 years before the 2020 increase, so the cover has not kept pace with deposit growth over the long run; any future revision would raise both protection and the premium pool. For depositors, the practical takeaways are that the limit is per bank (spreading large balances across banks raises total cover) and that it now applies within a time-bound payout framework after a bank is placed under restriction.
India deposit insurance (DICGC) FAQ
Methodology & sources: see how BankPulse dashboards are sourced, verified & updated · machine-readable deposit-insurance JSON feed.