Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) is a financial inclusion scheme launched by the Government of India in August 2014. The aim of the scheme is to provide access to financial services, such as banking and insurance, to the unbanked population of India. The scheme aims to promote financial inclusion and provide banking facilities to every household in the country.

Under the scheme, bank accounts are opened with zero balance and no fees are charged for opening the account. The account holder is provided with a RuPay debit card and the account can be used for receiving direct benefit transfers from the government, as well as for making deposits, withdrawals, and payments.

The scheme also provides an overdraft facility of up to Rs. 10,000 to eligible account holders. In addition, account holders are provided with accident insurance coverage of up to Rs. 2 lakh and life insurance coverage of Rs. 30,000.

The PMJDY scheme has been successful in achieving its objectives of promoting financial inclusion and bringing the unbanked population into the formal financial system. As of March 2021, over 43.6 crore bank accounts had been opened under the scheme, with a total balance of over Rs. 1.31 lakh crore.

The scheme has also been instrumental in promoting the use of digital payments in the country. Account holders are encouraged to use digital modes of payment such as mobile banking, internet banking, and UPI for making transactions.

In addition, the scheme has been successful in reducing leakages in government welfare schemes by enabling direct benefit transfers to the bank accounts of beneficiaries. This has helped in reducing corruption and ensuring that the benefits reach the intended beneficiaries.

Overall, the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana has been a transformative scheme that has helped in promoting financial inclusion and bringing the unbanked population into the formal financial system. The scheme has also been instrumental in promoting the use of digital payments and reducing leakages in government welfare schemes.