As a part of Beti Bachao Beti Padhao mission government of India started Samridhi Sukanya Yojana Plan for the benefit of the girl child. Parents of a girl child can open an account under Samridhi Sukanya Yojana on the name of their girl child until she turns 10 years. 

Samridhi Sukanya Yojana account has a maturation period of 21 years or till the marriage of the girl after 18 years of age. 7.6% is the rate of interest on the scheme from April 2020 and is compounded annually.

After the birth of a girl, the child’s parents can open a Sukanya Samriddhi account in her name at any time till she turns 10 years. The minimum account opening amount is Rs. 250/- after that Rs. 250/- is the minimum and Rs. 1.5 lakh is the maximum amount that can be deposited in the account in one financial year.

Parents can open the account for their girl child at any Post Office in India or in any bank designated for this purpose.  

Samridhi Sukanya Yojana plan (SSY) Account Eligibility Details

To open a Samridhi Sukanya Yojana plan (SSY) account below mentioned things are the main point to follow:

• Parents or legal guardians can open an SSY account only in the name of a girl child.
• At the time of the opening of the account the age of the girl must be below 10 years.
• Only one SSY account can be opened in the name of one girl child. No multiple accounts are allowed in the same name.
• For a family, only two SSY accounts are allowed which means for each girl child only one account.

SSY Account Features

• An attractive 7.6% interest rate is paid annually on the deposits of the Samridhi Sukanya Yojana plan
• Under section 80C the scheme provides tax deduction benefits
• Easy Investment options are available, a minimum of Rs. 250/- and a maximum of Rs. 1.5 lakh per annum can be invested.
• A penalty of Rs. 50/- is imposed on the account if the minimum amount is not deposited in any financial year.
• After the opening of the SSY account deposits can be made in the account till the completion of 14 years.
• Upon the completion of 21 years, the account will be matured from the opening date of the account. In the case, the account holder marries before 21 years the account operation is not allowed after the marriage.
• Account passbook is issued to customers

Withdraw Facility

• To fulfill the account holder’s financial requirements for the purpose of marriage or higher education she can avail the facility of partial withdraw after the age of 18 years.
• If the account holder gets married before the maturity of the account then the account has to be closed and cannot be continued after marriage.

Application Form for (SSY Account)

The application form to open a new account under Sukhanya Samriddhi Yojana Plan can be achieved from a nearby Post Office or from the private/public bank designated for the scheme. One can also get the form online by downloading it from the website of the RBI.  

How Can SSY Form be Downloaded Online?

You can download the application form for Sukanya Samriddhi Yojna account from different sources like:

• From the website of RBI
• From Indian Postal website
• Websites of individual public sector banks such as State Bank of India (SBI), Punjab National Bank (PNB), etc
• From the participating private sector bank websites like ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, and HDFC Bank.

No matter where an applicant downloads the SSY application form the form’s fields are the same regardless of the download source. 

Also Read: Services Provided by Indian Post Office: Postal Services

How to Fill the Application Form for SSA Account?

The Samridhi Sukanya Yojana application form requires filling in some basic information about the girl child in whose name the investment will be made under the SSY scheme. The form requires the details of the parents/guardians who wish to open the account and make the investment payment on behalf of the child.

The key filed that are mentioned in the SSY application form are as under:

• Name of Girl Child (Main Account Holder)
• Parent/Guardian’s name that opens the account on the name of girl child
• Initial deposit amount
• Number and date of Cheque or Demand Draft (DD) that is used for the initial deposit
• Birth certificate of the girl child
• Guardian/Parent’s identify details like Aadhaar card, Driving license, Passport, etc
• Parent/Guardian’s present and permanent address as per identification documents
• Any other KYC document details such as Voter ID, PAN card, etc

Parent/Guardian has to sign the form after filling the above-mentioned information in the SSY account form and need to submit it with the account opening authority i.e. Post Office or Bank designated for this job along with the copies of the documents which are necessary.

How to check the Balance of the SSY Account?

The account holder can check the balance through internet banking or mobile banking if the account owner opens it through a participating bank branch. But the owner has to do one thing that he has to link the SSY account to his existing net banking account for easy access to the SSY account.

Checking the balance of the SSY account online through the participating bank’s net banking facility is in an addition to the account passbook update option by visiting the bank physically.

IF the Samridhi Sukanya Yojana account is opened at Post Office then presently checking of online balance is not available. To check the balance of the account one has to visit the post office physically to update the account passbook.

Interest Rates for Sukhanya Samriddhi Yojna

For the financial year 2020, the interest rates for the SSY scheme are 7.6% and are annually compounded. The government of India fixes the interest rates and revises the interest rate quarterly. Below are the interest rates for Sukhanya Samriddhi Yojana:                       

Time Period	Interest Rate
April to June 2020	7.6%
January to March	8.4%
July to Sep 2019	8.4%
Apr to June 2019	8.5%
Jan to March 2019	8.5%
Oct to Dec 2018	8.5%
July to Sep 2018	8.1%
Apr to June 2018	8.1%
Jan to March 2018	8.1%
Oct to Dec 2017	8.3%
July to Sep 2017	8.3%
Apr to June 2017	8.4%

Conclusion

SSY is a government-backed scheme for the benefit of the girl child. The account under the Samridhi Sukanya Yojana plan can be opened in the name of a girl child below the age of 10 years. This account can be opened by the parents or guardians of the girl child. The maturity period for this plan is 21 years.

The account can be opened by depositing Rs. 250/- and can be opened at any post office or through the participating public or private sector banks.