Significant milestone! Jan Dhan accounts cross 50 crore-mark in less than 9 years
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New Delhi, Aug 19: In a significant development, the total number of Jan Dhan accounts in the country has crossed 50 crore mark, with 56 percent of the accounts belonging to women, the finance ministry said on Friday. About 67 percent of these accounts have been opened in rural and semi-urban areas.
"As per the latest reports submitted by banks the total number of Jan Dhan accounts have crossed 50 crore as on 9th August 2023. Out of these accounts 56% accounts belong to women and 67% accounts have been opened in Rural / Semi-urban areas," the Ministry of Finance said in a statement.
"The total deposits in these accounts are above Rs 2.03 lakh crore while around 34 crore RuPay cards have been issued with these accounts free of cost. The average balance in PMJDY accounts is Rs. 4,076 and more than 5.5 crore PMJDY accounts are receiving DBT benefits," it added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday morning called it a "significant milestone" while lauding the feat of the number of Jan Dhan accounts crossing the 50-crore mark. Taking to X (formerly known as Twitter), he said that it is heartening to see that more than half of these accounts belong to women.
This is a significant milestone.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 19, 2023
It is heartening to see that more than half of these accounts belong to our Nari Shakti. With 67% of accounts opened in rural and semi-urban areas, we are also ensuring that the benefits of financial inclusion reach every corner of our nation. https://t.co/sfZaNUOSts
The Modi government launched a massive nationwide exercise in 2014 to open Jan Dhan bank accounts to boost financial inclusion with the aim of making a host of financial services, including direct benefit transfers, accessible to the poor.
According to the ministry, PMJDY scheme has been successful in changing the financial landscape of the country and has brought near saturation in bank accounts for adults. The success of PMJDY lies in the comprehensive nature of the scheme with an attempt to connect the last mile with the formal banking system through technology, collaboration and innovation.
The scheme offers multiple advantages to account holders such as a bank account without requirement of minimum balance, free of cost RuPay debit cards with inbuilt accident insurance of Rs. 2 lakh and overdraft facility of up to Rs. 10,000.