Current Context: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced that the Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index) increased to 70.0 in FY26 (March 2026) from 64.2 in FY25 (March 2025).
- The improvement reflects wider access to banking services, increased usage of financial products, and better quality of financial services across the country.
- The FI-Index was introduced by the RBI in August 2021 to measure the extent of financial inclusion in India.
- It is a composite index with a score ranging from 0 to 100, where 0 indicates complete financial exclusion and 100 indicates full financial inclusion.
- The index is based on three broad parameters:
- Access (35%) – Availability of banking and financial services.
- Usage (45%) – Actual use of banking, credit, insurance, pension, and payment services.
- Quality (20%) – Efficiency, financial literacy, and consumer protection.
- The increase in the index has been driven by the expansion of digital payments, Jan Dhan accounts, Aadhaar-enabled services, mobile banking, and greater availability of banking infrastructure.
- The FI-Index is published annually in July using data for the financial year ending March.
Question:
Q1. The RBI's Financial Inclusion (FI) Index is based on which of the following three parameters?a) Access, Usage and Quality
b) Access, Liquidity and Credit
c) Savings, Credit and Insurance
d) Banking, Investment and Taxation
Answer: a) The RBI Financial Inclusion (FI) Index measures the level of financial inclusion in India using three parameters: Access (35%), Usage (45%), and Quality (20%). The index ranges from 0 to 100, with higher values indicating greater financial inclusion.
Answer: a) The RBI Financial Inclusion (FI) Index measures the level of financial inclusion in India using three parameters: Access (35%), Usage (45%), and Quality (20%). The index ranges from 0 to 100, with higher values indicating greater financial inclusion.
