Rina Das of Phulasundari square and Rinki Maharana of Hanuman Nagar of Odisha’s Berhampur are yet to get ₹500 in their Jan Dhan accounts as promised by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
They are among the Jan Dhan account holders of Odisha’s Ganjam district who are still to receive the special assistance under the Garib Kalyan Package declared by the Narendra Modi government due to COVID-19 pandemic. As per a ‘Rapid Assessment Survey’ conducted by the Youth for Social Development (YSD) in Ganjam, around 11% Jan Dhan account holders of the district have not received the special assistance.
Ms. Sitharaman, as part of the relief package for COVID-19 had announced that all account holders under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) will receive cash transfers of ₹500 for three months starting from April 2020. It was a small solace for the worst-hit sections of the society.
But Ms. Rina Das, who has her Jan Dhan account with the State Bank of India since 2019, claimed that she did not receive the relief while other account holders of her area have received ₹1,000 for April and May. Similarly, Ms. Rinki Maharana, having the Jan Dhan account in Bank of Baroda, has not received the money while her neighbours in Hanuman Nagar got the same.
Seven locations
The YSD had conducted the survey to study distribution of PMJDY amount to women beneficiaries across urban and rural areas in Ganjam district. It was conducted at seven locations in Ganjam. Out of respondents, 43% were homemakers while 48% were serving private and government agencies and 6% were students.
The study revealed that 95% of operational Jan Dhan account holders in Ganjam had linked their Aadhaar numbers. Seventy seven per cent respondents were aware of the PMJDY and the Garib Kalyan Package announced during the lockdown.
It was found that 77% of the respondents had received the ₹500 cash transfer for April and May. But 11% respondents had not received the cash transfer despite having operational Jan Dhan accounts. Around 65% respondents received information about the money transfer through physical visit to bank branches while 28% received the news through SMS. The survey also found that many respondents had no knowledge about transfer of money to their Jan Dhan accounts.
Thirty per cent of the respondents had to travel over 10 km to reach the bank to withdraw money, which was a significant hurdle during the lockdown. Around 43% of the residents decided not to withdraw money for fear of the lockdown and COVID-19 infection. Ironically, 7% respondents were denied withdrawal by bank officials for not maintaining the minimum balance of ₹2,000.
Half of the respondents used the amount received to purchase grocery and other essential items for their families. Others used it to pay house rent, health expenses and on children’s education. It is a positive sign that 12% respondents spent money on education of children despite their poverty and dire economic condition due to COVID-19.
