3 cr accounts to be opened in ’25 under Jan Dhan Yojana: FM

NEW DELHI: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said that nearly 3 crore new accounts will be opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) during the current financial year.

Launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 28, 2014, this flagship financial inclusion programme has seen a significant increase in bank accounts, rising from 14.72 crore in March 2015 to 53.13 crore as of August 16, 2024. Additionally, total deposits under PMJDY have surged from Rs 15,670 crore in March 2015 to over Rs 2.31 lakh crore by August 2024.

“We believe that the majority of adults in the country now have bank accounts, and our aim is to reach the remaining adults and new adults,” Sitharaman said briefing the media.

As of August 14, 2024, there were over 173 crore active CASA accounts in the country, which included more than 53 crore operational PMJDY accounts. Additionally, many regular savings bank accounts have been opened by banks. New initiatives such as e-KYC and video KYC have streamlined the account opening process, making it paperless and removing the necessity to visit a branch or a banking correspondent to open an account.