Follow Us
Amit Khajuria
Tribune News Service
Jammu, June 12
Customers of various public-sector banks said they were taken by surprise when they received a message from their bank to keep sufficient balance in their account as the renewal of their Pradhan Mantri Jan Suraksha Bima Yojana policy (PMSBY) was due for which they had never applied.
People who received the message said the policy was done in their name without their consent and the bank had auto-debited the premium from their account.
A customer said in case of a complaint, officials of the bank try to convince the policyholder that the policy is good for them and they should continue with it.
“I had never applied for any such policy in my bank, but when I checked my account statement this month, Rs 12 was deducted under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Suraksha Bima Yojana policy. Though Rs 12 is not a big amount, how can the bank deduct money from my account without my consent,” said Vishal Kumar (name changed), a customer of the State Bank of Patiala in Jammu.
“I do not know if the policy is good for me, but if they have insured me under the scheme, they should have informed me. Neither I, nor my family is aware of any such policy. To whom will they pay the claim at the time of any casualty?” he asked.
Requesting anonymity, an official of the State Bank of Patiala said: “There is pressure from our head office to complete the target. So the officials are left with no option but to do policies as Rs 12 hardly matters to most of the customers.”
“If anyone comes to the bank with a complaint, the official has to reimburse the amount deducted. But only one per cent people have approached the bank so far with the complaint,” the official said.
As claimed by the Central government, 126 million people have been covered under the Jan Suraksha Yojana. The accident plan had the highest enrolment at 94.2 million, followed by 29.6 million for term insurance and then the pension plan. The premium is Rs 330 for the life plan and Rs 12 for the accident plan.
Official sources said some customers found out they had not applied for the life plan policy, but yet it was issued to them and Rs 330 was deducted from their accounts.
The Pradhan Mantri Jan Suraksha Bima Yojana policy is government-backed accident insurance scheme, which provides death benefits upto Rs 2 Lakh, besides other benefits, and is aimed mostly for people who are below poverty line.
2
3
7