Business
oh-Prakash K.L.
More than 12 years after the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana was rolled out as the government’s flagship financial inclusion programme, a significant portion of the accounts opened under the scheme have either become inactive or remain empty, PTI reported citing data obtained under the Right to Information Act.
One in four accounts under the scheme are currently classified as non-performing, while around 5.72 crore accounts have a zero balance, the RTI reply said. As on August 12, 2026, the total number of PMJDY accounts across the country was over 59 crore. Data shows that these accounts have a cumulative deposit of over Rs 3.15 crore.
Data shows that more than 12 years after its launch in 2014, nearly a quarter of Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana accounts are non-performing, with 5.72 crore having a zero balance out of 59 crore total accounts holding over Rs 3.15 crore.
The Financial Services Department of the Ministry of Finance provided the data in response to an application filed by RTI activist Chandra Shekhar Gaur. In the reply dated September 1, the total number of accounts stood at 59,0374,907 and the cumulative balance reached Rs 3,15,179.90 crore.
Of these, nearly 32.89 crore accounts belong to women, including transgender people, while men account for 26.14 crore accounts. However, gender-disaggregated data on balances, zero-balance accounts or inactive accounts is not stored centrally, the government explained.
Across all states, Uttar Pradesh tops the list with PMJDY bills of 10.51 crore – the highest in the country – followed by Bihar with 7.01 crore, West Bengal with 5.73 crore, Rajasthan with 3.87 crore and Maharashtra with 3.85 crore. But those same states also feature prominently on the list of accounts that have become inactive or have no money in them.
Uttar Pradesh accounts for the highest number of zero balance accounts at 95.92 lakh, followed by Bihar (62.35 lakh), West Bengal (37.20 lakh), Assam (36.30 lakh) and Maharashtra (36.04 lakh).
In terms of non-performing accounts, UP again leads with 3.23 crore such accounts. This is followed by Bihar with 1.59 crore, Madhya Pradesh with 1.35 crore, West Bengal with 1.02 crore and Maharashtra with 97.94 crore.
As per banking norms, an account is classified as dormant if there are no customer transactions during a certain period. Interest-bearing loans or transfers of government benefits into the account are not necessarily considered customer-driven activity, meaning that the account could technically remain dormant even if subsidies continue to flow.
Access vs use
The figures – 15.36 crore inactive accounts and 5.72 crore accounts with zero balance – raise uncomfortable questions about how financial inclusion is handled in the country.
Launched in August 2014, the PMJDY program was conceived as a mission to bring every household into the banking industry. The goal was not simply to open accounts, but to provide universal access to banking services, as well as financial literacy and social security.
Figures now show that while access has been achieved for a huge number of households, uptake remains a challenge.
For households living on the margins, having a bank account is one thing. Storing money in it or using it regularly is another matter. When your income is barely enough to cover food, housing, transportation, and basic necessities, there is little left to save. And without a stable source of income, even a basic savings account can quickly turn into an inactive piece of paper.
Missing link
The government does not centrally maintain data on accounts with a balance below Rs 100, accounts closed in the last five years, or accounts frozen or blocked due to fraud or suspicious transactions, the RTI reply noted.
The state-wise figures provided in the reply cover 36 states and union territories.
The overall picture that emerges is one of a gap between opening accounts and actively using them. Financial inclusion, as politicians often repeat, does not end with the assignment of an account number. This requires income streams, financial literacy and, perhaps most importantly, a reason for households to keep coming back to the bank.
With the participation of agencies