Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Harsh Malhotra today said more than 54 crore zero-balance bank accounts have been opened under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana. Addressing the media in New Delhi, the minister said that people who earlier had no access to the banking sector are now contributing greatly to the economy of the country. Mr Malhotra highlighted women’s participation and said that 55 percent of the Jan Dhan bank accounts are opened by women, whereas 66 percent of the beneficiaries of the scheme are from the rural and semi-urban sectors of society.
The minister further added that nearly 37 crore RuPay cards were issued under the scheme. Mentioning direct benefit transfer schemes, Mr. Malhotra said that today there are no mediators between the government and the beneficiaries, and citizens are getting direct benefits from the government. Praising the central government’s health insurance scheme, the Ayushman Bharat scheme, he said nearly 36 crore Ayushman Bharat cards have been issued till now, and around 8 crore 39 lakh citizens have benefitted from the scheme. The Union Minister stressed that only the people of West Bengal and Delhi are not getting the benefit of the scheme and called on state governments to implement the scheme for the benefit of the citizens.