Banks open 5.29 cr accounts under Jan Dhan, issue 1.78 cr RuPay cards

The Finance Ministry on Thursday said 5.29 crore bank accounts have been opened and 1.78 crore RuPay debit cards have been issued so far under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flagship Jan Dhan Yojana.

"As on date, 5.29 crore accounts have been opened under PMJDY, of which 3.12 crore are in rural and 2.17 crore are in urban areas. RuPay Card have been issued in 1.78 crore accounts," an official statement said.

The Prime Minister had launched the ambitious financial inclusion scheme on August 28.

The benefit of Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) can be extended to existing account holders without opening a new account.

The statement said Mission Director and Additional Mission Director reviewed the progress in the implementation of PMJDY with Executive Directors of state-owned banks and some private banks such as Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank.

It said banks have been advised to increase their capacity to issue RuPay cards and clear the backlog quickly.

While most banks expect backlog to be cleared by October 15, in some banks it may take four weeks, the statement added.

Domestic banks have initiated the survey work for identification of uncovered households which will be completed by October 10.

This is being done excluding the states of Haryana and Maharashtra where survey work has been temporarily suspended in view of Assembly Elections, the statement said.

The main features of the PMJDY scheme include an overdraft facility worth Rs 5,000 for Aadhar-linked accounts, a RuPay Debit Card with in-built accident insurance cover of Rs 1 lakh.

Besides, account holders under the scheme will get a life insurance cover of Rs 30,000. This is an additional benefit that was announced by PM Modi during the launch of the scheme.

The government is also considering transfer of kerosene oil and LPG subsidies directly to bank accounts.

Presently, the government subsidises the products so that consumers can buy fuel below market price, however, under direct benefit transfer consumers will be paid cash subsidy so that they can buy kerosene and LPG at market price.