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Time of India
a day ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Former bonded labourers get essential identity documents
Mandya: The zilla panchayat launched a programme to bring 86 identified former bonded labourers into the mainstream by providing them with 13 essential govt identity documents, announced district minister N Cheluvarayaswamy. Speaking at the inauguration of an identity card distribution and health check-up programme for families of former bonded labourers in Maddur taluk, he emphasised the govt's commitment to eradicating bonded labour, which is illegal yet persists due to poverty and lack of awareness. Despite the illegality of bonded labour, some individuals continue to fall victim to it, due to economic hardship. The minister highlighted that among the 86 identified individuals—82 men and 4 women—the lack of govt documents was a barrier to accessing benefits. "To address this, the district administration is providing these individuals with critical documents, including Aadhaar cards, so that they can avail benefits of the govt schemes and lead dignified, self-reliant lives. Health check-ups are also being conducted as part of the initiative," he said. Maddur MLA KM Uday detailed the documents being provided, which include Aadhaar cards, caste and income certificates, ration cards, voter IDs, personal bank savings accounts, pensions under various schemes, Ayushman Bharat health cards, health insurance (PMJJBY, PMSBY), e-shram cards, UDID cards, Bhagyalakshmi scheme benefits, and MGNREGA job cards. These documents aim to empower former bonded labourers to live independently. ZP CEO KR Nandini stated that under the 'Sanjivini' campaign, eligible women from these families are being integrated into self-help groups under the NRLM scheme to access benefits and achieve self-reliance. Additionally, the RSETI programme is providing vocational training to eligible youth from these families to enhance their employability. "Under the 'e-swattu' and 'my identity' campaigns, the district achieved a milestone by providing over 49 e-property documents, 172 e-shram cards, more than 180 self-help group registrations, 10 caste and income certificates, and over 180 PMJJBY/PMSBY and UDID cards, along with MGNREGA benefits, to support the self-respect and livelihoods of former bonded labourers and their families. Additionally, the Bharatinagar GP is distributing free solar lights and sewing machines to these families to further aid their rehabilitation," she explained.

Mint
07-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
Financial services secretary urges fintechs to drive financial inclusion
To make fintech the prime vehicle for achieving financial inclusion, the Centre wants them to focus on developing solutions for offline payments, voice-based authorization tools, poor connectivity coverage systems, and cross-border payment facilities. Financial services secretary M. Nagaraju, speaking at the CII's Financial Inclusion and Fintech Summit in New Delhi on 7 July, also asked them to innovate low-cost but effective cybersecurity and anti-hacking solutions and focus on tamper-proofing their financial apps. '…fintech will actually drive the financial inclusion that is a key driver of both economic development as well as poverty alleviation all over the world. In fact, seven out of 17 SDGs (sustainable development goals) are related to financial inclusion,' Nagaraju said. He said that for fintech to become the prime vehicle for financial inclusion, it was important that these entities make people more informed by providing financial education and ensuring that consumers using their systems are not unfairly treated. 'I think fintechs have a great opportunity to take financial education to a large number of people in the country. Actually, one of the reasons why many people fall victim to frauds, or cyber frauds, is because of the lack of financial education…The second thing, I think, fintechs should look at is consumer protection. Ensure that consumers using your ecosystem are not unfairly treated, and their complaints are addressed properly, and they are protected from fraud," the secretary said. Nagaraju said the first step to financial inclusion was providing a bank account. According to the World Bank's Global Findex, prior to the launch of the Jan Dhan Yojana in 2014, 35% of adults in India had a bank account. This number rose to 90% in 2021, especially due to the government scheme. 'Today, we have 556 million accounts under Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) with a deposit base of ₹ 2.6 trillion. And, two-thirds of those accounts are in rural and semi-urban areas, and 56% are held by women,' Nagaraju said. He said the government's efforts to cover the unbanked and uncovered villages through the PMJDY had borne results, with June data indicating that 99.9% villages are now covered either by a bank branch or BC (business correspondent) or IPPB (India Post Payments Bank), within a five-kilometre distance. "This is again a remarkable achievement for our country. Total map banking touch points are now 2.13 million, which include branches, BCs, ATMs, and IPPBs,' he said. The government also launched three social security schemes: the PM Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), PM Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), and the Atal Pension Yojana (APY). These schemes aimed to encourage people in lower social ranks to appreciate the importance of social security in terms of insurance and pension cover. 'The cumulative enrolment in the three schemes as of June was 515 million (PMSBY), 239 million (PMJJBY) and 79 million (APY). This is one thing that brought a large number of people into financial inclusion. And when we talk about financial inclusion without considering this segment of the population, it has no meaning,' Nagaraju said. The secretary also provided details of the PM Mudra Yojana, where, since the scheme's launch in 2015, 535 million loan applications have been approved, and ₹ 34.6 trillion has been sanctioned, with 68% of loans going to women. In the case of the Stand Up India scheme, 275,000 loans have been sanctioned, and ₹ 62,000 crore has been disbursed, with 83% of loans going to women. '…women have played an important role in accessing financial inclusion. It actually shows the progress the country is achieving, in reaching, in achieving equality between men and women, and also women's empowerment,' he said. The secretary also said financial inclusion is also followed in informal set criteria, and the government's two schemes—PM Svanidhi and PM Vishwakarma (launched in April 2024)—have done very well. 'Till now, we have sanctioned 450,000 loans, and ₹ 3.6 trillion has been disbursed in the PM Vishwakarma scheme,' the secretary said.


Hans India
03-07-2025
- General
- Hans India
Claim amount under PMSBY and PMJJBY distributed
Kurnool: In a significant initiative to support the families of policyholders, the claim amounts under Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) were distributed to the beneficiaries at a programme at Union Bank of India near new RTC bus stand here on Wednesday. Regional Head P Narasimha Rao and Branch Manager R Rajani handed over the claim cheques to the families of the insured individuals -K Paramesh and Geetha Mahalakshmi. P Narasimha Rao emphasised the importance of such social security schemes and assured continued support to all eligible policyholders and their families.


Mint
01-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
Centre launches financial inclusion saturation drive across 270,000 villages, towns
New Delhi: In yet another effort to expand the reach of the government's financial inclusion schemes across the country, the Department of Financial Services under the finance ministry has launched a nationwide campaign aimed at achieving saturation at the gram panchayat (GP) and urban local body (ULB) level. The campaign, which will run from 1 July to 30 September, aims to cover all 270,000 GPs and ULBs in India. It seeks to spread awareness about the banking services available to citizens and explain how individuals can secure their financial future and that of their family members. According to a statement from the finance ministry, launch events for the financial inclusion (FI) campaign were organised at 33 locations across the country. These events saw participation from public representatives, state government officials, SLBC conveners, bankers, and beneficiaries. In Gujarat, the Chief Minister addressed the event virtually. During this three-month period, the campaign will focus on ensuring that Re-KYC of all savings bank account holders, wherever due, is completed in the targeted villages and towns. Another key objective is to open bank accounts for unbanked adults under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY). The campaign will also promote enrolment in key government-backed social security schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), and the Atal Pension Yojana (APY). Alongside these efforts, the campaign will educate citizens through awareness sessions on digital fraud prevention, explain how to access unclaimed deposits, and guide people through grievance redressal procedures. Officials will also assist in updating nominations in bank accounts wherever they are pending. On the first day of the campaign, camps were conducted in 2,087 gram panchayats across the country. These received a strong response from beneficiaries, reflecting growing public interest in financial services and awareness. The push to broaden the reach of financial inclusion schemes comes in the wake of a finance ministry review that found private banks still lag behind in servicing these schemes. Following this, the ministry has urged both private and public sector banks to step up their efforts in improving coverage and service delivery. In addition to PMJDY, PMJJBY, PMSBY and APY, the broader campaign also seeks to raise awareness about other financial inclusion programmes, including the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), Stand Up India, PM Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi), and PM Vishwakarma. Also Read | Govt to roll out credit rating for rural borrowers in six months During a review meeting held on Monday, financial services secretary M. Nagaraju underscored the importance of fast settlement of claims under the Jansuraksha schemes. He also emphasised the need to expand banking infrastructure in rural and northeastern regions and noted the significant progress India has made in strengthening social security and deepening financial inclusion through the government's flagship initiatives.


New Indian Express
01-07-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Union Bank of India to implement three-month financial inclusion drive in Vijayawada
VIJAYAWADA: The Union Bank of India (UBI) has announced the rollout of a nationwide three-month Financial Inclusion Saturation Campaign, set to run from July 1 to September 30, 2025. Initiated by the Department of Financial Services, Government of India, the campaign aims to ensure that financial services reach every eligible citizen, with a focus on empowerment through access to banking, insurance, pension, and digital tools. The campaign will emphasise complete coverage under key schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), PM Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), PM Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), and the Atal Pension Yojana (APY). It will also facilitate re-KYC updates for older and inactive accounts and raise awareness about digital frauds and claims related to unclaimed deposits. Nationwide, special financial camps will be held in all 2.7 lakh Gram Panchayats. In Andhra Pradesh, 13,324 Gram Panchayats will be covered. The campaign will be monitored daily by the State-Level Bankers' Committee (SLBC) and district-level Lead Bank Managers. As of now, Andhra Pradesh has recorded 1.70 crore PMJDY accounts, 0.38 crore APY subscribers, 2.86 crore PMSBY enrolments, and 1.29 crore under PMJJBY.