National Missions
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), a National Mission for Financial Inclusion, was announced by Hon'ble Prime Minister in his Independence Day address on 15th August, 2014 and launched on 28th August, 2014 across the nation simultaneously. The task is gigantic and is a National Priority. PMJDY lies at the core of Inclusive Growth – development philosophy of ‘Sab Ka Sath Sab Ka Vikas’. The necessity of launching such a mission was felt in view of the fact that less than two-thirds of the households in the country have access to banking facilities even after 67 years of India’s independence. PMJDY encompasses an integrated approach to bring about comprehensive financial inclusion of all the households in the country, with particular focus to empower the low income group and weaker sections of society including women, small and marginal farmers and labourers, both rural and urban.
PMJDY envisages universal access to banking facilities with at least one basic banking account for every household, financial literacy, access to credit, insurance and pension facility. In addition, the beneficiaries would get RuPay Debit card having inbuilt accident insurance cover of 1 Lakh. Another salient feature of PMJDY is that after remaining active for 6 months, the account holder will become eligible for an overdraft of up to Rs. 5,000. Exclusion from the banking system excludes people from all benefits that come from a modern financial system. PMJDY will be greatly helpful for gaining access to credit for economic activity as well as to insurance and pension services for their social security. It also looks forward to the Creation of Credit Guarantee Fund to cover the defaults in overdraft accounts, providing micro-insurance and unorganized sector Pension schemes like Swavalamban.
A structured monitoring mechanism is in place from Central to District level. At the Centre, Finance Minister is the Mission head along with a Steering Committee and a Mission Director. The programme is monitored at State level by a State Implementation Committee and in the districts by a District Implementation Committee. PMJDY also envisages channeling all Government benefits (from Centre / State / Local Body) to the beneficiaries accounts and making the Direct Benefits Transfer (DBT) scheme of the Union Government more efficient. Mobile transactions through telecom operators and their established centres as Cash Out Points are also planned to be used for Financial Inclusion under the Scheme. This deep penetration at affordable cost is possible only with effective use of technology.