MUMBAI, October 3 — The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Saturday published the annual reading of its comprehensive Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) for the period ending March 2026, recording an advance to 64.2 as compared to 60.1 in the preceding fiscal period.
According to the central banking authority, the FI-Index evaluates the extent of financial inclusion across the country on a single scale spanning 0 (representing total financial exclusion) to 100 (representing full financial inclusion) without a designated base year. The multi-dimensional composite index integrates three overarching sub-indices: Access (weighted at 35 percent), Usage (weighted at 45 percent), and Quality (weighted at 20 percent), encompassing 97 granular indicators covering banking, insurance, postal banking, and pension services.
The RBI highlighted that the sequential expansion was predominantly propelled by gains in the Usage and Quality dimensions. The proliferation of digital micropayments via UPI and the Aadhaar-enabled Payment System (AePS), alongside sustained balance accretion in Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) savings accounts, substantially compressed dormant account ratios across rural districts.
The architectural methodology of the RBI Financial Inclusion Index (conceptualised in August 2021), the National Strategy for Financial Inclusion (NSFI 2019-2024), institutional mechanics of the PMJDY and JAM trinity, and the Nachiket Mor Committee recommendations on comprehensive financial services for small businesses and low-income households are focal topics across UPSC Civil Services (GS-III: Inclusive Growth & Banking) and RBI Grade B examinations.