As per media reports, dated August 28, 2020, the finance ministry announced that the government will offer its life and accident insurance schemes, such as PM Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), and PM Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), to eligible Jan Dhan account holders. Jan Dhan Yojana was primarily launched to provide banking services to all households and played a crucial role in the success of other welfare schemes like direct benefit transfer (DBT) and, disbursal of financial assistance during the lockdown.
As per the new provisions, PMJJBY will be available to persons in the age group of 18-50 years having a bank account and the risk coverage under the scheme is Rs 2 lakh, in case of death of the insured. The premium for the scheme is Rs 330 per year. PMBSY includes the age group of 18-70, with a risk coverage of Rs 2 lakh, at a premium of Rs 12 per year. It is applicable in case of accidental death or full disability. However, in case of partial disability the coverage is Rs 1 lakh.
The government will also improve access of Jan Dhan Yojana account holders to micro-credit micro-investment such as Flexi-recurring deposits. It also looks to boost digital payments, including the use of RuPay debit card among the accountholders through the creation of acceptance infrastructure across India.
As of 19 August, there were more than than 40.35 crore beneficiaries under the scheme, amounting to ` 1.31 lakh crore. Close to two-thirds of the accounts are from rural area, and 55 per cent are held by women.
As per the finance ministry, the average deposit per account is ` 3,239, which is an increase of over 2.5 times since August 2015, which indicates increased usage of accounts. If there are no transactions by the holder for two years, the account is considered inoperative.
Courtesy: livemint.com
Pradhan MantriVayaVandanaYojana (PMVVY) Extended