Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana as a financial inclusion drive: a case study of West Bengal

Abstract

On the completion of fourth year of PMJDY, an effort was made to review the extent to which the primary objectives of the government’s flagship financial inclusion scheme could be achieved. A survey was conducted on 1000 respondents from five selected districts in the state of whom 500 respondents newly opened a bank account under the scheme. The remaining 500 respondents having a normal bank account constitute the control group. It is observed that PMJDY could enhance merely the arithmetic bank account ownership. The real objectives like overdraft-enabled small entrepreneurship or more insurance benefits could hardly be achieved. The much hyped bank account-induced family happiness could not be identified after analysis of response. Severe lack of awareness among the common people about the scheme or its benefits has been noticed.