Minimum account balance rules not applicable to PM Jan Dhan & saving accounts: FM Sitharaman

New Delhi, Aug 7: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said that minimum account balance rules do not apply to PM Jan Dhan and basic saving accounts.

“Minimum account balance rule does not apply to PM Jan Dhan accounts and basic savings accounts. It applies only to those bank accounts where customers are required to maintain a certain minimum balance in their accounts,” the Finance Minister said in response to a question in Rajya Sabha on the penalty of Rs 8,500 crore collected by public sector banks in the last five years for non-maintenance of minimum balance in bank accounts by customers.

The government banks that charged fines for not maintaining minimum balance include Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Punjab and Sind Bank, Union Bank of India Bank, UCO Bank, Indian Bank, Canara Bank, Bank of Maharashtra and Central Bank of India.

Minister of State (MoS) for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary had told the Lok Sabha last month that public sector banks have collected a fine of Rs 2,331 crore in FY24 for not maintaining minimum balance. “This amount was 25 per cent more than the amount from last year,” the MoS said.

In the financial year 2023-24, a penalty of Rs 633 crore was collected by Punjab National Bank, Rs 386 crore by Bank of Baroda and Rs 369 crore by Indian Bank for non-maintenance of minimum balance.

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (Jan Dhan or PMJDY), the Union government’s financial inclusion plan, envisages at least one basic banking account per household, improved financial literacy, and access to credit, insurance, and pension facilities.

Launched in 2014, PMJDY accounts are now about 23 per cent of India's total savings accounts by number. According to PIB data, a total of 52.81 crore Jan Dhan accounts with a deposit balance of Rs. 2,30,792 crores have been opened as of 19.07.2024 under PMJDY.

Out of the same, 29.37 crores (55.6 per cent) Jan Dhan accounts belong to women and about 35.15 crore (66.6 per cent) PMJDY accounts have been opened in rural and semi-urban areas. --IANS avs/dan --IANS avs/dan