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Reserve Bank's FI-Index, which captures the extent of financial inclusion in the country, rose 4.48 per cent during the year ending March 2026, the central bank said on Thursday. The Reserve Bank of India had constructed a composite Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) in consultation with concerned stakeholders, including the government. The annual index was first published in August 2021 for the fiscal year ending March 2021. "Index for the year ending March 2026 has since been compiled. The value of FI-Index for March 2026 stands at 70.0 vis-a-vis 67.0 in March 2025, with growth witnessed across all sub-indices," the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said. The improvement in the FI-Index this year is mainly on account of an uptick in usage, reflecting the deepening of financial inclusion, it added. The FI-Index has been conceptualised as a comprehensive index incorporating details of banking, investments, insurance, postal, as well as the pension sector, in consultation with the ...
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the PM SVANidhi scheme supporting street vendors has transformed the lives of countless hawkers by ensuring access to collateral-free credit, financial inclusion and new opportunities for growth. On the completion of six years of the scheme, he also said that PM SVANidhi is all about trust, dignity and empowerment. "Today we mark #6YearsofPMSVANidhi, a scheme which has transformed the lives of countless street vendors by ensuring access to collateral-free credit, financial inclusion and new opportunities for growth. This scheme is all about trust, dignity and empowerment. My best wishes to all beneficiaries whose determination and enterprise continue to strengthen our nation's economy," Modi said in a post on X. The Prime Minister Street Vendor's AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) is a central sector scheme supporting street vendors through affordable working capital, financial inclusion and social protection measures. The PM SVANidhi was ..
About 1.4 lakh new Jan Dhan accounts have been opened in the past fortnight under the nationwide financial inclusion saturation campaign, the finance ministry said on Tuesday. The Department of Financial Services (DFS), under the finance ministry, has launched a three-month nationwide saturation campaign, effective from July 1 to September 30, 2025, to bolster the outreach of flagship schemes, such as Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), and Atal Pension Yojana (APY), an official statement said. This campaign seeks to achieve comprehensive coverage across all Gram Panchayats (GPs) and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), ensuring that every eligible citizen gets the intended benefits of these transformative schemes. Nearly 1.4 lakh new Jan Dhan accounts have been opened and more than 5.4 lakh new enrolments have been recorded under three Jan Suraksha Schemes in the past fortnight, the statement