New Delhi (PTI): Private sector insurer Bharti AXA Life Insurance on Monday said it has set an ambitious target of collecting premium of Rs 1,000 crore by next year.

"We should have Rs 1,000 crore premium from the life insurance business by next year. Our general insurance business is also doing well," Bharti Enterprises Chairman and Manging Director Sunil Mittal told reporters in New Delhi.

According to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Website, the insurer during April-August period has collected first premium of Rs 92 crore.

Insurance business in India is highly under-penetrated and provides huge opportunity for growth, he said.

Bharti AXA Life Insurance is a 74:26 joint venture between Bharti and AXA of France — world leader in financial protection and wealth management.

The company which launched operations in December 2006 have operations over 12 States.

The focus on insurance business by Bharti would grow in future as the Group plans to fetch 50 per cent of its revenue from non-telecom businesses like insurance and retail.

The company in partnership with AXA is also into general insurance and asset management.

The asset management arm-- Bharti Axa Investment Manager-- aims to mobilise Rs 6,000 crore from investors by the end of current fiscal.

These aims could be achieved by launching a slew of schemes which the company intends to during the course of year, he said.

Going forward, the CMD said, the fund house plans to launch three more schemes in the next five months.

By 2012, the company aims to acquire assets worth USD 10 billion (about Rs 45,000 crore) and be among top 10 fund houses in India, he said.