Nirmala Sitharaman says financial inclusion major step towards inclusive growth

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana turns eight

Financial inclusion is a major step towards inclusive growth which ensures the overall economic development of the marginalised sections of the society, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Sunday.

The success of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) since August 28, 2014 is reflected in terms of opening of over 46 crore bank accounts with deposit balance of ₹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, she said on the eighth anniversary of the flagship financial inclusion scheme.

"Continuation of PMJDY beyond 2018 saw a marked shift in approach to meet challenges and requirements of the emerging FI (financial inclusion) landscape in the country.

"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," an official statement quoted the minister as saying.

The underlying pillars of PMJDY -- namely, banking the unbanked, securing the unsecured and funding the unfunded -- has made it possible to adopt multi-stakeholders' collaborative approach while leveraging technology for serving the unserved and underserved areas as well, she observed.

The Jan Dhan Yojana, which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day address in 2014, was launched on August 28 in the same year.

She also said the JAM (Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile) pipeline created through account holders' consent-based linking of bank accounts with Aadhar and mobile numbers of the account holders, which is one of the important pillars of the financial inclusion ecosystem, has enabled instant DBT under various government welfare schemes to the eligible beneficiaries.