Jan Dhan accounts swell to 43 crore with total deposits over Rs 1.46 lakh crore – Times of India
The PM said the scheme, which facilitates the unbanked population to open a bank account, has forever transformed India’s development trajectory.
It has ensured financial inclusion and a life of dignity as well as empowerment for countless Indians, Modi said, adding that the initiative has also boosted transparency.
I would like to applaud the untiring efforts of all those who have worked to make #PMJanDhan a success. Their effor… https://t.co/5COOvsBvIB
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) 1630127894000
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman also underlined the importance of the scheme, saying the journey of PMJDY led interventions undertaken over a short span of 7 years has in effect, produced both transformational as well as directional change, thereby making the emerging financial inclusion ecosystem capable of delivering financial services to the last person of the society-the poorest of the poor.
55% Jan-Dhan account holders are women and 67% Jan Dhan accounts are in rural and semi-urban areasOut of total 43… https://t.co/kk4QXUm18E
— Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) 1630120462000
Jan Dhan accounts increases to 43 crore
- Bank accounts under PMJDY have increased to 43 crore with total deposits over Rs 1.46 lakh crore.
- As on August 18, 2021, the number of total PMJDY accounts stood at 43.04 crore.
- Of 43.04cr, 55.47 per cent (23.87 crore) Jan-Dhan account holders are women and 66.69 per cent (28.70 crore) holders are in rural and semi-urban areas.
- During the first year of the scheme, 17.90 crore PMJDY accounts were opened.
- Increase in average deposit is another indication of increased usage of accounts and inculcation of saving habit among account holders.
- Total RuPay cards issued to PMJDY account holders rose to 31.23 crore.
- For account opened after August 28, 2018, the free accidental insurance cover on RuPay cards increased from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2 lakh.
About PMJDY
The PMJDY was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day address on August 15, 2014 and was simultaneously launched on August 28 to foster financial inclusion. This national mission was launched to ensure people have access to financial services, namely, banking, remittance, credit, insurance, pension in an affordable manner.
Under the PM Garib Kalyan Yojana announced on March 26, 2020, an amount of Rs 500 per month for three months (April’20 to June’20) was credited to the accounts of PMJDY women account holders, the finance ministry said.
A total of Rs 30,945 crore has been credited in accounts of women PMJDY account holders during Covid lockdown as an income support measure.
About 5 crore PMJDY accountholders receive direct benefit transfer (DBT) from the Government under various schemes, the ministry statement added.
To ensure that the eligible beneficiaries receive their DBT in time, the government takes an active role in identification of avoidable reasons for DBT failures in consultation with DBT Mission, NPCI, banks and various other ministries, it said.
With close monitoring in this regard through regular video conferencing with banks and NPCI, the share of DBT failures due to avoidable reasons as a percentage of total DBT failures has decreased from 13.5 per cent (FY 19-20) to 5.7 per cent (FY 20-21), it noted.
On the road ahead, the finance ministry said, eligible PMJDY account holders will be sought to be covered under the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY).
Banks have already been communicated about the same, it said.
The government is also focussed on promotion of digital payments including RuPay debit card usage amongst PMJDY account holders through creation of acceptance infrastructure across India, it said.
Another focus area is improving access of PMJDY account holders to micro-credit and micro investment such as flexi-recurring deposit etc, it said.
(With inputs from agencies)
For all the latest business News Click Here
