Government revamps financial inclusion program for enhanced social security coverage

The upgraded Jan Suraksha model may offer higher insurance and pension coverage, with a focus on linking all the Jan Dhan account holders, two officials aware of the discussions told ET.

“We are reviewing a proposal to double the limit in the life and accident cover under the two flagship schemes,” a government official said. Other suggestions, including hiking the minimum guaranteed pension under the Atal Pension Yojana (APY), are also being looked at, he said.

At present, under the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), the insurance cover is ₹2 lakh each. The minimum pension guaranteed under APY ranges from ₹1,000 to ₹5,000, depending on one’s contribution.“The focus is also on prompt claim payment in case of the insurance schemes and that banks will proactively inform nominees of insured deceased account holders by detecting the same from its core banking solution (CBS) and autogenerating communication,” the official said.

At present, banks and insurers have been advised to settle claims within 14 days of receipt of the claim, with a week each for the bank and the insurer to process it. “The financial institutions will also publicise expeditiously settled claims to give more confidence to subscribers and increase the numbers,” he said.

Another official said that through various state-level bankers’ committees, or SLBCs, it has been conveyed to banks that all Jan Dhan accounts that have a quarterly average balance of ₹1,000 or more may be taken as an indication that they will be able to pay those premiums and should be actively pursued.

The Prime Minister’s Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) is a zero-balance savings account scheme to ensure access to banking services to all citizens.

Banks will also actively push NPS Vatsalya, launched earlier this year. The scheme allows parents to open a pension account for minors with a ₹1,000 annual contribution.

Premium revision
An executive with a state-run general insurer said if the government is looking to increase the insurance coverage under PMSBY and PMJJBY, then there may be a case for increasing their premium as well. “This also needs to be factored in as the last premium revision was only done after the claim ratio had drastically increased,” he said.

At present, life insurance scheme PMJJBY’s annual premium is Rs 436, and accidental death and disability insurance scheme PMSBY has an annual premium of just Rs 20. The government had revised these rates in 2022 in view of the adverse claims experience of the schemes, PMJJBY and PMSBY, and in order to make them viable for the implementing insurers.