Financial Inclusion : A Gateway to Reduce Corruption through Direct Benefit Transfer

Financial inclusion is the key driver of India's vision to achieve faster sustainable and more Inclusive growth (Twelfth five year plan). Hence financial inclusion is one of the policy priorities of the Government of India. The Government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has taken many initiatives towards achieving financial inclusion but the major breakthrough was achieved by implementing world largest financial inclusion drive Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY). The success in recent financial inclusion drive is helping Government to implement many programmes like Direct Benefit Transfer, Digital India project and Cashless India Project has helped to reduce corruption. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the Progress of Financial inclusion in India and to assess the impact of financial inclusion on corruption through Direct Benefit Transfer. The total numbers of beneficiaries under DBT scheme was 63.22 crore during 2017-18.Till 2016-17 Government saved Rs. 57,029 Crore through Direct Benefit Transfer by increasing transparency, efficiency, reducing middlemen and transaction cost. Lack of Financial literacy, strict and fast punishment for corruption and inadequate infrastructure for safe electronic payment is the important challenge before Government. Minimization of corruption, tax evasion, black money is only possible through financial inclusion when people do less cash transaction and start using their bank account for all their financial transaction