Secretary, DFS Chairs Meeting to Prepare Roadmap for Financial Inclusion 2.0

1. At a Glance

• Financial Inclusion 2.0 is the next-generation framework being drafted by the Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance, to move beyond bank-account opening toward universal access, deeper usage, insurance/pension saturation, and credit inclusion [S1].
• Meeting chaired on 11 February 2026 by Shri M. Nagaraju, Secretary, DFS with RBI, DEA, MeitY, MoRD, MoHUA, MoLE, IRDAI etc. [S1].
• Relevant for UPSC because it ties together PMJDY, JAM trinity, DBT, digital payments, PMJJBY/PMSBY/APY, RBI's Financial Inclusion Index, and NSFI 2019-24/NSFE 2020-25 [S1][S3][S4].

2. Why in the News

• DFS Secretary chaired an inter-ministerial meeting on 11 Feb 2026 to prepare the roadmap for Financial Inclusion 2.0, covering universal banking access, digital payment adoption, wider insurance and pension coverage, and financial + digital literacy at secondary/sr. secondary school level [S1].
• Push for at least one bank branch in each subdivision of the North-Eastern Region and bringing the credit-excluded into the formal credit system [S1].

3. Background & Evolution

• 2005: RBI introduced No-Frills Accounts — first formal inclusion push.
• 2008: Rangarajan Committee on Financial Inclusion.
• 2011: Swabhimaan scheme for unbanked villages (>2,000 pop.).
• 28 Aug 2014: PMJDY launched as National Mission for Financial Inclusion [S2].
• 2015: Jan Suraksha trio — PMJJBY, PMSBY, APY launched.
• 2019: RBI's National Strategy for Financial Inclusion (NSFI) 2019-24 [S4].
• 2020: NSFE 2020-25 (National Strategy for Financial Education) [S4].
• Aug 2021: RBI Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) launched (base FY2021 = 43.4) [S3].
• Feb 2026: DFS convenes Financial Inclusion 2.0 roadmap meeting [S1].

4. Core Static Facts

• Nodal body: Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance [S1].
• Regulators involved: RBI, IRDAI, PFRDA, SEBI [S1].
• FI-Index (Mar 2025): 67.0 (vs 64.2 in Mar 2024; up 24.3% since 2021) [S3].
• FI-Index sub-indices: Access, Usage, Quality (Quality includes financial literacy & consumer protection) [S3].
• PMJDY accounts: 56.16 crore (Aug 2025); deposits ₹2.67 lakh crore; 56% women; ~67% rural/semi-urban [S2].
• PMJJBY: 22.52 crore enrolled; ₹17,600 cr claims paid (8.8 lakh claims) [S3].
• PMSBY: 50.54 crore enrolled (as of 19 Mar 2025) [S3].
• APY: 7.33 crore subscribers (Jan 2025); 89.95 lakh new enrolments FY24-25 [S3].
• Saturation Campaign: 1 Jul–30 Sep 2025 nationwide drive for PMJDY/PMJJBY/PMSBY/APY [S2].

5. Multi-Dimensional Analysis

Economic - Shifts focus from account ownership to active usage and credit access; targets the "missing middle" outside formal credit [S1]. - Deepens digital payments (India accounts for ~49% of global real-time payments per BIS data); strengthens consumption and MSME credit.

Social - Saturation of insurance/pension to informal-sector workers; gender inclusion (women hold 56% PMJDY accounts) [S2]. - NER focus — branch in every subdivision tackles spatial exclusion [S1].

Administrative / Governance - Whole-of-government model: MeitY (digital rails), MoRD (SHGs/NRLM), MoHUA (urban poor), MoLE (workers), Dept. of School Education (curriculum) [S1]. - Integration with JAM trinity and Aadhaar-enabled DBT.

Scientific / Technological - Leverages UPI, Aadhaar e-KYC, Account Aggregator framework, ULI (Unified Lending Interface), and CBDC (e₹) pilots. - Digital literacy in schools flagged as a new pillar [S1].

Legal / Regulatory - Statutory base: RBI Act 1934, Banking Regulation Act 1949, PFRDA Act 2013, IRDA Act 1999, PMLA-KYC norms. - Aligns with NSFI 2019-24 (extended) and NSFE 2020-25 [S4].

6. Recent Developments (12–18 months)

• 11 Feb 2026: DFS Secretary chairs FI 2.0 roadmap meeting [S1].
• Aug 2025: PMJDY completes 11 years; 56.16 cr accounts, ₹2.67 lakh cr deposits [S2].
• Jul–Sep 2025: Nationwide Financial Inclusion Saturation Campaign [S2].
• Mar 2025: FI-Index rises to 67.0 [S3].
• Mar 2025: PMSBY cumulative enrolment 50.54 cr [S3].

7. Prelims Hooks

• Department of Financial Services is under Ministry of Finance (not MoCA) [S1].
• PMJDY launched 28 August 2014; tagline "Mera Khata – Bhagya Vidhata" [S2].
• FI-Index launched by RBI in August 2021; base year FY 2020-21 [S3].
• FI-Index has 3 sub-indices: Access (35%), Usage (45%), Quality (20%) [S3].
• PMJJBY — life cover ₹2 lakh; age 18-50; premium ₹436/yr.
• PMSBY — accidental cover ₹2 lakh; premium ₹20/yr.
• APY regulated by PFRDA (not RBI/IRDAI) [S3].
• FI-Index value March 2025 = 67.0 [S3].
• PMJDY accounts in Aug 2025: 56.16 crore; women share 56% [S2].
• DFS Secretary in 2026: M. Nagaraju [S1].
• IRDAI established under IRDA Act 1999; PFRDA under PFRDA Act 2013.
• NSFI period: 2019-2024; NSFE: 2020-2025 [S4].

8. Mains Relevance

• GS-II: Government policies & interventions for vulnerable sections; welfare schemes.
• GS-III: Indian Economy — inclusive growth, banking sector reforms, mobilisation of resources.
• Probable stems: 1. "Financial Inclusion 2.0 marks a shift from access to usage. Discuss the rationale and the institutional challenges." (GS-III, 15 marks) 2. "Evaluate the role of the RBI's Financial Inclusion Index in measuring the depth of inclusion in India." (GS-III, 10 marks) 3. "Examine how the JAM trinity has redefined welfare delivery, and identify remaining gaps that Financial Inclusion 2.0 must address." (GS-II, 15 marks)

9. Related Topics to Study Next

• PMJDY & JAM Trinity — foundational platform for FI 2.0 [S2].
• RBI's NSFI 2019-24 / NSFE 2020-25 — policy parents [S4].
• Account Aggregator framework & ULI — credit-side rails.
• Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) — UPI, Aadhaar, DigiLocker — tech backbone.
• PMJJBY, PMSBY, APY — Jan Suraksha trio enrolment data [S3].
• PMMY (MUDRA), Stand-Up India, PM SVANidhi — credit inclusion vehicles.
• CBDC (e₹) pilot — future payments layer.
• Self-Help Groups (DAY-NRLM) — last-mile inclusion via MoRD.

10. Common Errors / Trap Areas

• FI-Index is published by RBI, not NITI Aayog or MoSPI [S3].
• APY is regulated by PFRDA, while PMJJBY/PMSBY are insurance schemes (LIC/general insurers under IRDAI).
• DFS sits under Ministry of Finance, not a standalone ministry.
• FI-Index has no base year value of 100 — base FY21 was 43.4; it is a 0-100 scale built from sub-indices [S3].
• Confusing NSFI (Inclusion, RBI) with NSFE (Education, NCFE/RBI) — different documents [S4].
• PMJDY was launched in 2014, not 2015; overdraft limit was later raised to ₹10,000.

11. Sources

• [S1] Secretary, DFS Chairs Meeting to Prepare Roadmap for Financial Inclusion 2.0 — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=2226612&reg=3&lang=2 — (tier 1)
• [S2] 11 Years of PM Jan Dhan Yojana: Banking the Unbanked — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressNoteDetails.aspx?NoteId=155102&ModuleId=3&reg=3&lang=2 — (tier 1)
• [S3] 67 and Rising: India's Financial Inclusion Gains Momentum — https://www.pib.gov.in/PressNoteDetails.aspx?NoteId=154980&ModuleId=3&reg=3&lang=2 — (tier 1)
• [S4] National Strategy for Financial Education 2020-2025 (RBI) — https://rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/PublicationReport/Pdfs/NSFE202020251BD2A32E39F74D328239740D4C93980D.PDF — (tier 1)