How to get benefit of Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) ?

Medical Insurance is becoming popular now a days in India and COVID-19 has provided a big push for quantum jump in its popularity. However, those who need it most can afford it least. The weaker section of the society who is pulling on their daily life on stressed financial budget cannot, in spite of their best intentions, afford medical insurance. This is an irony of our society. An incident of a hospitalisation for a poor family pushes the family in a debt trap. If the breadwinner of the family has to be hospitalised, the financial wound becomes deeper, leaving long-lasting implications on the family. The aged people with no earning capacity and no savings have to suffer the pain – they are more vulnerable but less cared for. In order to provide universal free health care to all eligible citizens, the Government of India first announced the Ayushman Bharat Yojana as a universal health care plan in February 2018 in the Union budget of India. The Yojana has been touted as the world’s largest health care programme in the world. An important milestone under Ayushman Bharat is the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) which was launched on 23/09/2018 by our Honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

The features of the PMJAY:

1. It is a means tested (eligibility based on the economic position of the family) scheme. The households included are based on the deprivation criteria of Socio-Economic Caste Census 2011 (SECC 2011) and occupation for rural and urban areas respectively.

2. It subsumed the old Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) which was introduced in 2008. Hence, PM-JAY covers families that were covered in RSBY but are not present in the SECC 2011 list. The beneficiaries under Employee State Insurance Scheme (ESIS) are also covered.

3. PM-JAY is fully funded by the Government and cost of implementation is shared between the Central and State Governments. It is implemented under the aegis of National Health Authority.

4. Hospitalisation (in public and private empanelled hospitals in India) expenses to the extent of Rs. 5,00,000/- (Rs five lakh only) is provided to the family per year.

5. PM-JAY provides cashless access to health care services for the beneficiary at the point of service, that is, the hospital.

6.  It covers up to 3 days of pre-hospitalization and 15 days post-hospitalization expenses such as diagnostics and medicines.

7. There is no restriction on the family size, age or gender.

8. All pre–existing conditions are also covered from day one.

9. Beneficiary can avail the medical treatment from any empanelled public or private hospital across the country.

10. Services include approximately 1,393 procedures covering all the costs related to treatment, including but not limited to drugs, supplies, diagnostic services, physician's fees, room charges, surgeon charges, OT and ICU charges etc.

11. The cap on benefit of Rs. 5,00,000 per year is  on a family floater basis which means it can be used by one or more members of the family.

12. COVID-19 patients can avail free treatment at empanelled hospitals.

 

Who Is Not Eligible for PMJAY?

The people falling under one or more categories are not eligible for PMJAY:

• Those who have mechanised farming equipment.
• Who owns a two, three or four-wheeler.
• Those who hold a Kisan card.
• Government employees.
• Those who own a motorised fishing boat.
• Those who are earning more than Rs.10,000 per month.
• Those who are working in government-run non-agricultural enterprises.
• Those who own more than 5 acres of agricultural land.
• Those who own landline phones or refrigerators. 
• Those who live in decently built houses.

 

How to apply online for Ayushman Bharat Yojana?

Follow the following steps for applying online for PMJAY card (popularly known as a Gold Card):

-  Visit the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana official website at https://pmjay.gov.in/

- Click on ? mark (“Am I Eligible”) icon (on right hand top corner).

- Enter your contact details (mobile number), Captcha code and generate OTP.

- Select your state

- Select Category (Search your name by your name or mobile number (if registered in (SECC) Socio Economic and Caste Census 2011) or HHD (a 24 digit Household Id number given to each family in SECC 2011) or Ration Card number)

- If you search by Name, fill in your  name,  Father’s name, Mother’s name, Spouse’s name, your gender, age, district name, village name, area(Rural / Urban), PIN Code, etc. Care: if the details are not filled in properly, you might not find your name in the list even though you are in the eligible list.

- Click on 'Family Members' tab to find the family members listed in SECC database

- HHID is also available along with the details of the family members. Note down the HHID on a piece of paper for reference in future.

- Click on “GET DETAILS ON SMS” and fill up your mobile number and Captcha code and Click on submit button.

- A message will appear on the screen “SMS has been sent to your mobile number XXXX. Thank you”.

- With this SMS, visit a CSC (Common Service Centre) or Community Health Centre/ Empanelled Hospital in your vicinity.

- Each member of the family has to give the biometrics (finger print) which will be verified with Aadhar database to confirm the identity of the beneficiary. The photo and other details are auto-populated from the Aadhar database and printed on the card.

- Each member is given a separate PMJAY Card (Gold Card). The card is required to avail the benefit under the AB-PMAJY.

- Family members can be added due to birth or addition due to marriage or name of a family member is left out due to some genuine error.

- Alternatively, you can approach any Empanelled Health Care Provider (EHCP) or dial the Ayushman Bharat Yojana call centre number: 14555 or 1800-111-565 to know whether you are eligible or not under PMJAY.

- To know the details of benefits under the PMJAY, just send Hi on WhatsApp Number

+91 98689 14555 (Just Ask Master Ayushman service).

Progress so far:

More than 12.58 crore cards (till March, 2021) have been issued under the PMJAY. It has been lauded as the largest universal health care initiative in the world. It has earned many accolades from the international organisations, including World Health Organisation. The scheme aims to cover 50 crores beneficiaries. By the end of June 2021, as many as 1,91,32,000 patients have availed the hospitalisation treatments worth Rs 13,412 crore through a network of 21,565 public and private empanelled hospitals. The National Health Authority has also prepared detailed guidelines to issue eCard to the beneficiaries.

Disclaimer: The information given in the blog is only for general awareness and must not be construed as a professional advice. Readers are advised to consult the professionals in any subject matter of the blog before acting on the information discussed in the blog. The readers who are acting otherwise are doing so at their own risk.

(The reader’s comments are welcome at gnpatel@gujaratinfotech.com)

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How to Open a Bank CSP (Customer Service Point)?

To Open a Bank CSP / Customer Service Point (Centre) or to become a CSP / Bank Mitra / BCA / VLE (Village Level Entrepreneur) is a sound career option for the youth. Many youths are aspiring for this work and hence many so called “agents” have set up their network to take undue advantage of these gullible youths. Not only that, even amongst the authorized CBC companies, there may be some companies whose dealing with the aspiring candidates may not be transparent and support may be poor once you have joined as a BCA. Hence, it is utmost important to select a reputed CBC Company with a strong track record. If any person representing him/her as an authorized agent or employee of the CBC, it is always advisable to cross-check with the Head Office of the company about the credentials of such person. You can also apply online on the website of the Company or submit the application by email/post. Most importantly, any payment to be made in this connection, must be made by A/c Payee cheque drawn in favour of the CBC Company.

Eligibility criterion to become a BCA/CSP/Bank Mitra/VLE:

·        Age: Applicant must be at least 18 years of age.

·      Minimum educational qualification - 10th level examination passed from a recognized board.

·        Should have a valid Aadhaar and PAN number.

·        Must know the local language

·        Preference will be given to a local person

·        Must be computer literate

 Documents required with application:

 .   Application form duly filled in and signed by the candidate

.   Two passport size photos

.   Cancelled Cheque without signature

Self-Attested True Copy of:

-         Education certificate (Highest Education Qualification)

-         Proof of residence (Aadhar Card)

-         Photo ID Proof (Aadhar Card)

-         PAN Card

(the original is also to be produced only for verification by CBC Company)

Following documents to be produced as and when advised by the CBC Company:

-       Clean Police Report

-    The photograph of the place where the kiosk is to be set up (one photo from outside and one from the inside of the place). This is not required under tablet model.

-     Ownership document / Rent Agreement of the place for the kiosk This is not required under tablet model.

 Other pre-conditions:

ü     The branch with which the applicant wants to be linked must be willing to engage a BCA in the locality from where the applicant wants to operate.

ü    Must have necessary resources for purchasing required computer peripherals / tablet / internet connection / suitable space for setting up the kiosk / furniture (as per the specification / configuration fixed by the bank. Space / furniture may not be insisted upon under tablet model).

ü   The candidate has to pass the IIBF (Indian Institute of Banking and Finance, Mumbai) online certificate exam within specified period after the engagement as a BCA.

ü    Must have a bank account with Cheque Book facility

ü    Must be able to obtain clean Police Report from the Police Station having jurisdiction over the residential area of the applicant

ü   Must not be working as a BCA of any other bank

ü    If worked as a BCA of any bank in the past, must give acceptable reason why he ceased to be a BCA. This fact must be mentioned in the Application Form.

ü    Must have clean CIBIL (Credit Rating Agency) Report.

 How the application moves further:

As stated above, the CBC Company plays a vital role in engaging the BCA. The CBC has information about the branches which want to engage new BCA. Some time, CBC is looking for new BCA to fill up these vacancies.

After receipt (online or physical) of the application, the CBC will verify the documents, visit the applicant and the proposed place. CBC will also make discreet inquiry about the reputation of the applicant. CBC will introduce the applicant to the Branch Manager, who will also interview the applicant. The CBC will submit the documents to the Branch. If the Branch Manager is satisfied about the eligibility criterion and capability of the candidate, he will submit the proposal to higher authority for generation of BCA Code. After receipt of the Code, the CBC company will issue Authority Letter and ID Card to the applicant to work as a BCA.  CBC Company will also give training, product knowledge, Welcome Kit, etc.

With the nationalization of India’s 14 major banks in 1969, the seed of Social Banking (the term Financial Inclusion was not coined by then) was sown. The nationalization of banks in India is a glorious example of adaptation by commercial business houses from profit to public service without losing the commercial viability of the business. As usual to public sector, various committees have been appointed from time to time to achieve the objectives of nationalization. Khan Committee (2004) recommended to implement Business Facilitator (BF) model (for delivering non-financial banking services) and Business Correspondent (BC) model (for delivering financial banking services). As a result, the concept of Financial Inclusion was first introduced in India in 2005 by the Reserve Bank of India. The objectives of Financial Inclusion are to provide basic no-frills banking account for making and receiving payments. Later, Dr Rangrajan Committee (2006) went further and recommended to exploit BC model not only for delivering banking services but entire gamut of financial services (insurance, pension plans, investment, Financial Literacy, etc)  to financially excluded, vulnerable section of the society under Financial Inclusion Project and bring them into mainstream economy.

What is Financial Inclusion:

Financial Inclusion is the process of delivering appropriate financial products and services needed by weaker sections of the society at an affordable cost in a fair and transparent manner.

The present status:

There are 10 lakh BCAs working under the project as on March 2019 and delivering following financial services to customers in their vicinity:

Though the features of the Project differ from bank to bank to some extent, they can be generally described as under:

Services offered through BC Model are:

a.   Opening of Saving Banks (PMJDY)/ Fixed Deposit /PPF/ Recurring account.
b.  Cash Deposit and Cash Withdrawal.
d.   Fund Transfer from one centre to another centre
e.   Balance Inquiry.
f.   Mini Statement.

g.   Linking of Aadhar Card and Mobile Number

h.   Payment of utility bills

i.   Opening Insurance Accounts (Atal Pension Yojana, PMJSY, PMJJY, etc)

j.  Payment of amount credited by Govt under PMGKY, PMKSNY, MGNREGA, Cooking Gas Subsidy, other DBT, Student Scholarship, etc)

k. Canvassing the loan a/cs (Agriculture - KCC, Term Loans, Gold Loans. Non Agriculture – Housing Loans, Car Loans, Gold Loans, etc)

l.  Recovery in overdue /NPA a/cs as advised by the branch

How the Project works:

The most important link in the project is the Corporate Business Correspondent (CBC) which is generally a reputed company. The CBC is selected after a strict due diligence process considering the technical and financial capabilities and reputation of the company. The bank also obtains Security Deposit and /or Bank Guarantee from the entity. The CBC is accountable for all the acts and omissions committed by the BC engaged under it as per the Agreement between the bank and the CBC. This provision is very important for instilling the confidence amongst the customers while transacting the banking transactions with the BCA and maintain the integrity of the transaction from end-to-end.  The CBC is getting commission on the work done by the BC, which is shared with the BC as fixed by the bank. The scope of dispute about the commission payable to BCA is rare as it is calculated as per the rate fixed by the bank. The bank will credit the shar of BCA commission first and then credit the Company’s share through special accounting process.

Gujarat Infotech Ltd is working as a CBC Company since 2012 of various banks and has good reputation amongst banks, BCAs and customers. At present hundreds of BCs are working under our Company. 

To become CSP Bank Mitra visit our website www.gujaratinfotech.com 

To apply online, contact us at 8448444245 for more information. A small step in right direction will change your future.

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