Jan Dhan Yojana revolutionised financial inclusion in India, more than 50 crore bank a/cs opened: Nirmala Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday that Jan Dhan Yojana-led interventions and digital transformation have revolutionized financial inclusion in the country as more than 50 billion people have been included in the system. formal banking system with cumulative deposits exceeding Rs 2 billion.
On the 9th anniversary of Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), one of the world’s largest financial inclusion initiatives, Sitharaman said in his message that 55.5% of bank accounts were opened. by women and 67% of bank accounts were opened. . open in rural/semi-urban areas.
Under this scheme, the number of bank accounts has increased 3.4 times from 14.72 crores in March 2015 to 50.09 crores as of August 16, 2023.
Total deposits also increased from Rs 15,670 crore in March 2015 to over Rs 2.03 lakh crore in August 2023.
Average deposit in Jan Dhan account has increased 3.8 times from Rs 1,065 in March 2015 to Rs 4,063 in August 2023.
Around 34 crore RuPay cards have been issued for these accounts free of charge, which also provide Rs 2 lakh accident insurance. No-balance accounts in this program were reduced to 8% of total accounts in August 2023, from 58% in March 2015.
Sitharaman said, “PMJDY’s 9 years of digital intervention and transformation has revolutionized financial inclusion in India. Thanks to the collaborative efforts of stakeholders, banks, insurance companies and government officials, PMJDY stands out as a pivotal, game-changing initiative. financial integration in the country…”.
The Minister of Finance, Bhagwat Karad, said that the Jan Dhan ‘Aadhaar’ (JAM) mobile architecture has enabled the successful transfer of government benefits to people’s accounts in a seamless manner.
“The PMJDY account has become the backbone of people-centric initiatives such as Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) and has contributed to inclusive growth for all members,” said Karad. part of society, especially the most disadvantaged”. PMJDY was launched on August 28, 2014 with the aim of providing universal banking services through opening zero balance bank accounts to all unbanked households, based on guiding principles of banking for the unbanked, guaranteeing the unsecured, and financing the unbanked.