Jan Dhan Yojana: On July 8, the Finance Ministry clarified that no instructions have been given to banks to close inactive accounts under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY).
This came in response to some media reports that claimed the government had asked banks to shut such accounts.
What Did the Government Say?
In an official statement, the Department of Financial Services (DFS), under the Ministry of Finance, said it has not asked banks to close inactive Jan Dhan accounts.
Nationwide Three-Month Campaign Launched
According to the ministry, a three-month campaign was launched on July 1 to strengthen the reach of PMJDY, Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, Atal Pension Yojana, and other welfare schemes.
As part of this campaign, banks have been told to complete re-KYC for pending accounts.
DFS is keeping track of inactive Jan Dhan accounts and has advised banks to reach out to account holders to help them reactivate their accounts.
The ministry also mentioned that the number of PMJDY accounts is steadily increasing, and no mass closure of inactive accounts has been reported.
What Is the Jan Dhan Yojana?
The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) was launched on August 28, 2014, to bring banking services to every household, especially the poor and unorganised sector.
Under this scheme, anyone can open a zero-balance savings account in a bank. Benefits include:
RuPay debit card
₹2 lakh accident insurance cover
₹30,000 life cover
Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) of government subsidies
The scheme promotes financial literacy, encourages people to save money, and provides access to credit and insurance.
With over 54.58 crore accounts, it is one of the world’s largest financial inclusion programs.
What’s the Confusion About Account Closure?
Some news reports claimed that the government had advised public sector banks to review and close Jan Dhan accounts that had been inactive for a long time.
As per these reports, around 11.3 crore accounts (23%) were inactive as of December 2024, and these might be shut down.
However, the government has officially denied this. It clearly stated that no orders have been issued to close inactive accounts.
So, even if your Jan Dhan account hasn’t had any recent transactions, it will not be closed by the government.
