As many as 14.83 lakh accounts opened under Mahila Samman Savings Certificate Scheme (MSSC) and mobilised Rs 8,630 crore, Parliament was informed on Monday. This is a newly launched small savings scheme of the government to commemorate the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and is exclusively for women and girls in India, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
Sharing some salient features of the scheme, he said an yMSSC account may be opened by women of any age group, including the girl child, with a minimum deposit of Rs 1,000 and a maximum deposit of Rs 2 lakhs for a period of two years.
The interest rate for MSSC is 7.5 per cent per annum, which is compounded quarterly, and the facility of partial withdrawal and premature closure on compassionate grounds are also available under this scheme, Chaudhary said.
The government has authorised the Department of Posts, all public sector banks and four private sector banks to operate MSSC, he said, adding some lenders like Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and IDBI Bank have not yet started the scheme.
Mahila Samman Savings Certificate Scheme has been made available for a two-year period up to March 2025.
An application for opening an account can be submitted on or before March 31, 2025. Replying to another question, Chaudhary said the interest rate on National Savings Time Deposit Scheme (1 Year & 2 Year) and National Savings Recurring Deposit have been increased by 10 bps and 30 bps, respectively, in the second quarter (July to September) of FY 2023-24.
“It has been the stated policy of the government to simplify the Income-tax Act, 1961, by removing exemptions and incentives while at the same time reducing the rates of taxes. As such, there is no proposal to increase exemption under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act under consideration,” he said.
The net collection under Small Savings Schemes for the first two months of Q1 of FY 2023-24 is Rs 74,937.87 crore, he said.
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