PMJDY provides an avenue to the poor to bring their savings into the formal financial system.
The Government’s flagship financial inclusion scheme – Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) – has completed eight years. The scheme has successfully brought unbanked sections of society to the banking system. As of now, there are 46.25 crore beneficiaries banked under PMJDY since inception.
The scheme has been the foundation stone for many people-centric economic initiatives. Whether it is direct benefit transfers, COVID-19 financial assistance, PM-KISAN, increased wages under MGNREGA, life and health insurance cover, the first step of all these initiatives is to provide every adult with a bank account, which PMJDY has nearly completed.
Also Read : NEFT, RTGS transactions: What to do if money is not credited to beneficiary account on time
PMJDY provides an avenue to the poor to bring their savings into the formal financial system. It also provides an avenue to remit money to their families in villages besides taking them out of the clutches of the usurious money lenders. Here’s a look at some key features of the bank accounts opened under this scheme:
- The scheme provides Basic savings bank accounts with an overdraft facility of Rs. 10,000 to every eligible adult.
- The Upper age limit for OD has been increased from 60 to 65 years.
- Overdraft up to Rs 2000 is allowed without any conditions.
- RuPay Card Insurance: PMJDY provides free accidental insurance cover on RuPay cards, which has been increased from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 2 lakh for PMJDY accounts opened after 28.8.2018.
- Insurance: Accident cover up to Rs. 1,00,000 and life cover of Rs. 30,000 on accounts opened between 15 Aug 2014 to 31 January 2015.
- A PMJDY account is treated as inoperative if there are no customer-induced transactions in the account for over a period of two years.
PMJDY Accounts have grown three-fold from 14.72 crores in March 2015 to 46.25 crore as of 10-08-2022. As of 10th August 2022, 55.59% (25.71 crores) of Jan Dhan account holders are women and 66.79% (30.89 crores) of Jan Dhan accounts are in rural and semi-urban areas. Total deposit balances under PMJDY Accounts stand at Rs. 1,73,954 crore. The average deposit per account is Rs. 3,761.
Also Read : Govt bans export of wheat flour, maida, semolina, more to curb rising prices; Read details
Commenting on the completion of 8 years of PMJDY, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a statement, “The success of the PMJDY since August 28, 2014 is reflected in terms of opening of over 46 crore bank accounts with deposit balance of Rs 1.74 lakh crore with its expanded coverage to 67% rural or semi-urban areas as well as 56% of women Jan Dhan account holders. Continuation of PMJDY beyond 2018 saw a marked shift in approach…There has been a shift in focus from ‘every household’ to ‘every adult’, with added emphasis on usage of accounts by enhancing Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) flows through these accounts, promoting digital payments through the use of RuPay cards, etc.”
