Mumbai: Finance minister Arun Jaitley on Monday said that dormant accounts under Jan Dhan Yojana have fallen below 20% from 77% earlier as state resources are flowing directly to the targeted population.
“Bulk of dormant accounts have become operational. More the direct benefit transfer expands, more will be the operationalization of accounts,” said Jaitley in an event organised by the United Nations.
Pension scheme, gas subsidy, scholarship and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) wages are directly transferred to beneficiaries’ account along with MUDRA scheme, saving the state’s resources.
Jaitley stressed that these incentives will help the informal economy in getting integrated with formal.
The government saved Rs21,000 crore in subsidies by blocking fake liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) connections, PTI reported in February. At the launch of Jan Dhan scheme in 2014, insurance schemes and overdraft facility were used as incentives to bring more people under the ambit of financial inclusion.
Jaitley said Aadhaar is an important link which was an evolving idea under the previous government. “Aadhaar legislation has been passed and it will stand test of constitutionality,” he added.
According to Jaitley, over 100 million account holders have opted for accident insurance and 36 million have opted for life insurance cover. Under Jan Dhan scheme, account holders are given accident insurance and life cover of Rs1 lakh and Rs30,000, respectively. Around 300 million bank accounts have been opened so far under Jan Dhan scheme, according to their website.