Over 11 lakh savings accounts have been opened by various banks in Karnataka in the first phase of the Prime Minister's Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), the financial inclusion scheme, as on Thursday. This is higher than the targeted 10.27 lakh accounts, said Anjaneya Prasad, Executive Director of Syndicate Bank, the lead banker in the State, at the launch of PMJDY scheme in Bangalore.
PMJDY aims at providing at least one basic savings bank deposit account to each household in the country, preferably in the name of the female member of the family. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the scheme on August 15.
Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers said that about 42 per cent of the country's population was still outside of banking ambit and the scheme aims to extend the facility to them. An accidental insurance cover of Rs 1 lakh would be provided to the account holder, who can operate with a zero balance.
Karnataka Chief Minister, Siddaramiah said that 80 per cent of the population in the state had access to banking facility, mainly on account of the people friendly policy pursued by the governments.