Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana: Is there a plan to set 8.1% interest rate? Finance Ministry replies

Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY), a special investment plan designed exclusively for the financial welfare of the girl child, is in news currently in respect of its likely interest rate going forward.

In his reply to various questions concerning the scheme, including the likely interest rate, the Minister of State for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, on Monday (March 23, 2026) ruled out any likelihood of restoring the original interest rate of 8.1%.

The minister said the need to restore the SSY interest rate "does not arise" in response to a query on "whether the Government is likely to come forward to restore the original interest rate of 8.1 per cent to increase the subscription numbers" by Lok Sabha member T R Baalu.

Chaudhary also pointed out that the interest on the amount invested under this scheme has continued to be at 8.2% per annum.

For the January-March quarter of FY 2025-26, the interest rate on SSY was at 8.2% per annum.

Reflecting on the popularity of the scheme, the minister said that since its inception on January 22, 2015, SSY has recorded a consistent growth in both the number of accounts and deposits.

From 4.2 lakh accounts as on March 31 in 2014-2015, the number of SSY accounts have increased to 424.57 lakh accounts as in 2024-25, a significant 10,009% increase in 10 years. Likewise, on the deposit front too, the amount invested in the scheme recorded a whopping growth from ₹0.001 lakh crore in 2014-15 to ₹2.99 lakh crore in 2024-25.

The year-wise cumulative position as on March 31 of each year is given below:

Thus in view of the record growth both in terms of deposits as well as the number of accounts, the ministry pointed out that the need to restore the interest rate on the scheme does not arise.

Interest rate on small saving schemes like SSY, PPF and NSC are revised quarterly based on the market yields of G-securities of comparable maturity as per the recommendations of the Shyamala Gopinath Committee.