10 years of Jan Dhan Yojana: All you need to know

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) is a flagship programme of the Narendra Modi-led BJP-NDA government since its first tenure. The Prime Minister had announced the scheme from the ramparts of the Red Fort in his first Independence Day address in 2014. The scheme was officially launched on August 28, 2014 and is run by the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance.

PMJDY is basically aimed at financial inclusion to expand access to services like bank accounts, remittances, credit, insurance and pensions. The program is open to all Indian citizens, even as young as 10 who can open a bank account with a guardian. The unique aspect of this program is that there are no account opening charges, no account maintenance charges, and no minimum balance charges.

On inauguration day, around 15 million bank accounts were opened and the mammoth scale of the exercise was even noted by the Guinness Book of World Records.

The scheme has been at the heart of many key people-centric economic initiatives especially in direct benefit transfers during the Covid-19 pandemic and for PM-Kisan. The account holders are also eligible for other schemes like Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), Atal Pension Yojana (APY), Micro Units Development & Refinance Agency Bank (MUDRA) scheme.

Today marks 10 years to the launch of the scheme. The Indian Prime Minister took to his official X account, calling it a ‘momentous occasion,’ that has given a major boost to financial inclusion and provided dignity to crores of people including women, youth, and marginalized communities. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also hailed the scheme.

MyGov, Citizen Engagement Platform of Government of India, shared some interesting data on its social media platforms today showcasing the success of the Jan Dhan Yojana scheme. These included:

• 53.13 Crore new bank accounts have been added. This is more than the entire population of European Union!
• Out of 53.13 Crores, 29.56 Crore beneficiaries are women, nearly equal to the entire population of the United States of America.
• The Direct Benefit Transfers have been a huge success too, with the government transferring about 38 lakh crores directly to the people because of the scheme.
• 35.37 Crores of these accounts have helped empower rural and semi-urban lives.
• From March 2015 to June 2024, every PM Jan Dhan Yojana account has seen an estimate 4 times jump in deposits, from Rs. 1065 to Rs. 4397.
• 36.14 Crore Rupay Debit Cards have been issued.

During the current financial year, the government hopes to add more than 3 crore accounts under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana. 

Overall, the scheme has been a game changer for financial inclusion, digitalization, women empowerment, and also in helping bridge the urban-rural divide.