Dulloo directs saturation of all social security, insurance schemes
Jammu : Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, Tuesday chaired a comprehensive review meeting of the Finance Department to assess the progress made in promoting financial inclusion and extending coverage of key welfare and social security schemes across J&K. The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary, Finance, Santosh D. Vaidya; MD, J&K Bank; Secretary, IT; Secretary, School Education; DG, Budget; DG, Economics & Statistics; MD, Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board (BOCWWB); representatives of other banks besides other senior officers.
Addressing the meeting, the Chief Secretary highlighted the critical need to mobilize eligible beneficiaries, especially from the unorganized sector, for enrollment in the Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maandhan (PMSYM) scheme, which guarantees a monthly pension of Rs 3,000 for unorganized workers upon reaching 60 years of age. He instructed district administrations to implement proactive measures by designating local Labour Offices, EPFO, and ESIC offices as facilitation centers to enhance awareness and assist with registrations. The Chief Secretary also directed the Finance Department to provide comprehensive datasets of eligible beneficiaries, including construction workers, MDM workers, and street vendors, to banks to expedite their enrollment. He emphasized the importance of a targeted and coordinated approach to improve district-wise performance and bridge the gap between current coverage and national averages for financial inclusion and welfare schemes. This includes clearly identifying target groups, defining outreach strategies, and assigning specific responsibilities to ensure effective saturation across the Union Territory. The Principal Secretary of Finance reported that approximately 5.46 lakh unorganized workers have been identified for PMSYM enrollment. He noted significant progress in various financial inclusion initiatives, including 77,208 new enrollments under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), bringing the total to 23.13 lakh accounts, and 4.30 lakh new enrollments under the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY), totaling 27.64 lakh accounts. Additionally, 1.57 lakh new enrollments under the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) raised the total to 11.06 lakh accounts, while over 33,500 new subscribers were added under the Atal Pension Yojana (APY), reaching a cumulative total of 2.81 lakh. The meeting underscored that flagship schemes like APY, PMJJBY, and PMSBY are essential components of the government’s social security and insurance framework, aimed at providing affordable coverage to all societal segments. The APY guarantees a monthly pension between Rs 1,000 and Rs 5,000 at age 60, with over 43% of its 2.15 crore national subscribers being women. PMJJBY offers life insurance coverage of ₹2 lakh for individuals aged 18–50 years at a nominal annual premium of Rs 330, while PMSBY provides accidental insurance coverage of Rs 2 lakh for death or full disability and Rs 1 lakh for partial disability for citizens aged 18–70 years, at a premium of only Rs 12 per annum. Progress was also reviewed under the Building and Other Construction Workers (BOCWW) Welfare Board, with 5.90 lakh workers registered as of October 2025. The Social Welfare Department has extended old-age, widow, and disability pensions to nearly 8.6 lakh beneficiaries across the UT, achieving a beneficiary ratio of approximately 600 per 10,000 population in Jammu and Kashmir. The Chief Secretary praised the efforts made thus far and called for intensified and coordinated actions at all administrative levels to achieve full saturation under all welfare and social security schemes in a timely and mission-oriented manner.
