According to the state government, Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of accounts opened under the Prime Minister Jan Dhan Yojana. (Representational/File)With over 3.50 crore new accounts opened over the past five years for the poor under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, Uttar Pradesh presently has around 7.93 crore Jan Dhan bank accounts – the highest in the country – the state government stated on Tuesday.
Of the 7.93 crore Jan Dhan accounts, 54.3 per cent (4.31 crore) accounts are in the name of women, according to the government. As per the government, the figures indicate how people in the state are reaping benefits of various welfare schemes launched by the government. Till Match 2022, the accounts had deposits worth Rs 33,774 crore, against Rs 5,565.10 crore in March 2021, the government said.
According to the state government, Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of accounts opened under the Prime Minister Jan Dhan Yojana. More than 10 crore 10 crore people in the state are getting benefits of government schemes through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) under the accounts. The beneficiaries include pensioners, scholarship holders, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana beneficiaries and farmers, among others.
Recently, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath launched the ‘One Gram Panchayat, One Banking Correspondent’ programme targeting those living in rural areas while ‘bank mitras’ and ‘bank sakhis’ were appointed to help villagers access banking facilities with ease.
“Now, on an average, one banking outlet is providing its services every 1.5 kilometres in the state,” as per the government details. “The banking business in the state has crossed Rs 21 lakh crore in the quarter that ended in March, 2022 and digital transactions have increased more than three times to Rs 426 crore – up from Rs 122 crore in the past five years,” the government claimed.