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The government aims to promote digital transactions through Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana to reduce the number of dormant accounts, a senior Finance Ministry official said here on Friday.
PMJDY was declared winner in the Financial Transformation category of the annual businessline Changemaker awards. Parshant Kumar Goyal, Joint Secretary in the Financial Services Department of Finance Ministry, received the award from Power Minister RK Singh. “This award exemplifies the impact that visionary policies of the government have on citizens,” he said, after receiving the award. “It is a recognition of the difference that can be made by the government,” he further said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced PMJDY as a financial inclusion programme on August 15, 2014. It was launched on August 28, 2014, and during the week of launching, over 1 crore accounts were opened. These accounts are basic saving bank accounts, where there is no requirement of maintaining minimum balance. The account holder gets RuPay card through which goods and services can be purchased. There is also insurance cover provided through this card, free of cost. As on date there are nearly 51 crore PMJDY accounts with total deposit of over ₹2 lakh crore.
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“Nearly 3 crore accounts are being added every year to PMJDY,” Goyal said, adding that the effort is on to reduce dormant accounts. Nearly 20 per cent of existing accounts are dormant. “We will urge banks to integrate digital transactions with PMJDY so that the number of dormant accounts could be reduced,” he said.
On the one hand PMJDY, combining with Aadhaar and mobile number and forming the JAM trinity, promoted Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) for various welfare schemes and, on the other, the scheme has brought improvement in the financial behaviour, financial attitude, and, most important, financial planning among households, especially in rural areas.
PMJDY has become a channel for providing many associated benefits. The Jan Dhan accounts holders are now enrolled for Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) which offer life and health cover at a very nominal premium.
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