Moving Beyond Barriers: India's Financial Inclusion Journey

by Shika Saravanabhavan, Meenakshi Rajeev

Overview

This book provides a comprehensive analysis of financial inclusion in India, blending empirical analysis with policy evaluation. It showcases the remarkable progress achieved through various financial inclusion initiatives in India, most notably through the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), while also addressing the challenges that persist. Drawing on unit-level data from multiple rounds of the NSSO-Debt and Investment Survey, the book offers a rigorous assessment of four core components of financial inclusion: savings, credit, insurance, and remittances. This analysis is further enriched by data from the Reserve Bank of India and the Global Findex, providing a well-rounded analysis. By offering nuanced insights into India’s financial inclusion journey, this work serves as a valuable resource for policymakers, researchers, development practitioners, and students working in the domain of financial inclusion.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9789819510658
Publisher:	Springer Nature Singapore
Publication date:	12/22/2025
Series:	Palgrave Studies in Impact Finance
Pages:	210
Product dimensions:	5.83(w) x 8.27(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Shika Saravanabhavan holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bangalore. Her academic training and research are rooted in development economics, with a particular focus on financial inclusion and its impact on economic development. In addition to her academic credentials, she has valuable experience in the development sector, which has further informed her research perspective. Her recent work explores topics such as rural credit, informal lenders and small enterprises in India. She is currently working as a Research associate at the Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bangalore.

Dr Meenakshi Rajeev is currently Professor of Economics at the Indian Institute of Technology, Jammu and Institute for Social and economic Change, Bengaluru. She held the position of HAG Professor and the the Reserve Bank of India Chair Professor and Head, Centre for Economic Studies and Policy, at the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore. She has graduated from IIT Kanpur in Statistics and did her Ph D in Economics from the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata. She has worked as a faculty and taught at the University of California at San Diego, Central Michigan University, Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, Kolkata, Presidency College, Kolkata. She has published more than 100 articles in reputed journals and as working papers from India and abroad and has over 10 books and monographs to her credit. Her recent book "Emerging Issues in Economic Development: A Contemporary Theoretical Perspective" from Oxford University Press and "Financial Access of the Urban Poor: A Story of Exclusion" from Springer are worth mentioning. Her areas of research include game theory, banking and credit market, industrial economics and development economics. She has visited and taught in a large number of universities in USA, UK, Germany, France and Norway, including Cornell University, University of Essex, Central Bank of Norway to name a few. She is in a number of committees of the Government . Recently she acted as the task force member for the formulation of the R &D policy for the state of Karnataka. She has taken up large number of research projects from institutions such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Norwegian research council, Ford Foundation, Government of India and Karnataka, RBI and NABARD.

Table of Contents

Chapter one- Financial Sector Development in India: An Overview.- Chapter two- Financial inclusion drive in India- A comparative analysis with other developing countries.- Chapter Three- Financial Inclusion in India: A State-level Analysis.- Chapter Four- Financial Inclusion and Rural Credit Access.- Chapter Five-Financial Inclusion and Urban Credit Access.- Chapter Six- Financial Inclusion and Savings in Banks.- Chapter Seven - Financial Inclusion and Insurance.- Chapter Eight - Financial Inclusion and Remittance Services.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“I am delighted to see this elaborate and comprehensive new book on financial inclusion in India by Shika Saravanabhavan and Meenakshi Rajeev. Financial inclusion has always been a critical issue in India's development process. Students, teachers, researchers and policy experts would be immensely benefited by this contribution, amply rich in evidence and analyses.” (Sugata Marjit, Former Vice - Chancellor, Calcutta University, India
Former Director and RBI Chair Professor, CSSSC, Kolkata, India)

“Much has been written about financial inclusion in the Indian context. The Jan Dhan–Aadhaar–Mobile (JAM) trinity has brought about a transformative structural shift in this space, necessitating a holistic and comprehensive reassessment. This volume undertakes precisely that task, making it a significant and timely contribution to the literature on financial inclusion in India.” (N R Bhanumurthy, Director, Madras School of Economics, India, Former Vice Chancellor, DR B R Ambedkar School of Economics, Bengaluru, India)