Mapping the Financial Inclusion Continuum Under PMJDY: Empirical Evidence from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan

Financial inclusion remains an important policy objective in developing countries, and access to banking services becomes a critical prerequisite for poverty alleviation and socioeconomic empowerment. The launch of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) scheme by the government of India in 2014 marks India’s most extensive financial inclusion initiative, which aims to ensure universal access to financial products. Despite its impressive quantitative achievements, there is a need for analysing the depth and sustainability of financial inclusion impacts. Accordingly, this article explores the extent and determinants of PMJDY awareness, enrolment and account utilization in the states of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, based on primary survey. The research design employed a three-stage analytical framework involving the use of descriptive analysis, Pearson’s chi-square test of association and binary and ordinal logistic regression models for comprehensive analysis of socioeconomic factors influencing financial inclusion outcomes for all categories of participants. The findings reveal that while awareness of PMJDY is near-universal across both states, significant disparities in enrolment and account utilization persist along the dimensions of social category, income, educational attainment, occupational status and regional location. Social category and education emerge as the most consistent structural determinants of awareness differentials, while occupation and regional variation are the principal drivers of transaction frequency. This article may aid policymakers of PMJDY towards targeted, community-sensitive and geographically differentiated interventions that address the structural barriers faced by the most socially and economically marginalized beneficiary groups.