AMFI is working to make investing accessible to everyone! They’ve launched three new programs—Chhoti SIP, Tarun Yojana, and MITRA—to help people start investing, learn about it, and quickly recover their funds. These initiatives aim to simplify investing and bring more people into the financial system.
1. Chhoti SIP: Small Steps Towards Big Investments
If you’ve never invested, AMFI’s ‘Chhoti SIP’ is perfect. You can start building your financial future with a small step of only ₹250 a month.
Key Features of Chhoti SIP:
✅ Minimum Investment Requirement: Investors can begin an SIP with only ₹250 each month, a significant drop from the old ₹500 minimum.
✅ Encourages Financial Inclusion: This plan is designed for individuals who may find traditional SIPs unaffordable, helping them take their first step toward wealth creation.
✅ Ideal for Young Earners & Low-Income Groups: Perfect for college students, fresh graduates, daily wage earners, and gig workers who want to start investing early.
✅ Builds Investing Discipline: Even a small monthly investment helps instil the habit of saving and investing regularly.
✅ Power of Compounding: Compounding can grow even a tiny monthly SIP significantly over time.
How Does Chhoti SIP Benefit Investors?
✅ Affordability: With just ₹250 per month, anyone can start their investment journey without financial strain.
✅ Long-Term Growth Potential: Investing early, no matter how small, allows you to build a secure financial future.
✅ Flexibility: Investors can increase their SIP amount whenever their income grows.
✅ Reduces Market Timing Risk: Regular investing through SIPs helps investors average out market fluctuations and avoid timing-related risks.
Example:
Ashwin, a 22-year-old fresh graduate, has just started his first job with a monthly salary of ₹20,000. He is eager to start investing but is hesitant as he has limited savings and many expenses.
Instead of waiting for a higher income, Ashwin starts a Chhoti SIP with just ₹250 per month in an equity mutual fund. As his salary increases, he gradually increases his SIP amount to ₹1,000, ₹2,000, and beyond.
Scenario After 10 Years:
If Ashwin consistently invests ₹250 per month and gradually increases his SIP by ₹250 every year, assuming an average annual return of 12%, here’s how his investment will grow:
| Year | Base Monthly SIP (₹) | Incremental Monthly SIP (₹) | Total Investment (₹) | Estimated returns at 12% (₹) | Total Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 250 | - | 30000 | 28,084 | 58,084 |
| 2 | 250 | 250 | 27,000 | 21,705 | 48,705 |
| 3 | 250 | 500 | 24,000 | 16,381 | 40,381 |
| 4 | 250 | 750 | 21,000 | 11,994 | 32,994 |
| 5 | 250 | 1000 | 18,000 | 8,439 | 26,439 |
| 6 | 250 | 1250 | 15,000 | 5,621 | 20,621 |
| 7 | 250 | 1500 | 12,000 | 3,458 | 15,458 |
| 8 | 250 | 1750 | 9,000 | 1,876 | 10,876 |
| 9 | 250 | 2000 | 6,000 | 810 | 6,810 |
| 10 | 250 | 2250 | 3,000 | 202 | 3,202 |
| 1,65,000 | 2,63,570 |
Ashwin can accumulate a substantial corpus without financial burden by gradually increasing his SIP.
Chhoti SIP is a game-changer for first-time investors, allowing them to start small and build wealth gradually.
2. Tarun Yojana: Financial Literacy for Young Minds
Tarun Yojana helps students become financially responsible by teaching them about money, investing, and saving right from school. This program equips young minds with the knowledge and skills to make informed financial decisions.
Why Financial Literacy Matters for Students?
Our schools and colleges often skip teaching the basics of money management, which means many young people are entering the real world unprepared. With the rise of digital payments, stock markets, and mutual funds, it has become essential for students to understand the basics of earning, saving, investing, and spending wisely.
Key Features of Tarun Yojana:
✅ Early Introduction to Finance: Students learn how to manage money, save, invest, and handle risks through this program.
✅ Prepares Students for Financial Independence: It teaches them how to be smart with their money when they grow up.
✅ Hands-on Learning: Includes practical activities, workshops, and interactive games to teach students about SIPs, compounding, and asset allocation.
✅ Simplified Learning Modules: The concepts are taught in engaging and age-appropriate ways, making finance easy for young learners to understand.
✅ Encourages Smart Money Habits: Helps students develop financial discipline and understand the benefits of long-term investments.
How Does Tarun Yojana Benefit Young Learners?
✅ Builds a Savings Mindset Early On: They save some of their pocket money and learn how even small amounts can grow over time.
✅ Promotes Smart Spending & Budgeting: It helps students become responsible spenders by teaching them to prioritise needs over wants.
✅ Teaches Investment Basics: They get the basics of mutual funds, SIPs, and how money works so they can make more intelligent choices when they start earning.
✅ Encourages Goal-Based Investing: This program helps young people set financial goals, such as saving for higher education, a startup, or future financial security.
Example:
Thanks to Tarun Yojana, 15-year-old Kavita took a lesson about money at school. She found out about:
📌 The power of compounding – how small investments today can grow into a large sum over time.
📌 The benefits of SIPs – why regular investing is better than waiting for a lump sum.
📌 Risk and reward – understanding why diversification is essential.
When Kavita started her first job, she was familiar with mutual funds and SIPs. Instead of delaying investments, she began investing with her first salary, ensuring she secured a secure financial future right from the beginning.
Scenario After 10 Years:
If Kavita starts investing ₹1,000 per month in a SIP at age 18 and increases it by ₹500 every year, assuming an average return of 12%, her investment can grow significantly:
| Year | Base Monthly SIP (₹) | Incremental Monthly SIP (₹) | Total Investment (₹) | Estimated returns at 12% (₹) | Total Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1000 | - | 1,20,000 | 1,12,339 | 2,32,339 |
| 2 | 1000 | 500 | 54,000 | 43,410 | 97,410 |
| 3 | 1000 | 1000 | 48,000 | 32,763 | 80,763 |
| 4 | 1000 | 1500 | 42,000 | 23,989 | 65,989 |
| 5 | 1000 | 2000 | 36,000 | 16,878 | 52,878 |
| 6 | 1000 | 2500 | 30,000 | 11,243 | 41,243 |
| 7 | 1000 | 3000 | 24,000 | 6,917 | 30,917 |
| 8 | 1000 | 3500 | 18000 | 3,753 | 21,753 |
| 9 | 1000 | 4000 | 12,000 | 1,621 | 13,621 |
| 10 | 1000 | 4500 | 6,000 | 404 | 6,404 |
| 3,90,000 | 6,43,317 |
By the time Kavita turns 28, she will have almost ₹6.5 lakh in her portfolio by consistently investing small amounts.
💡 Learning about money can help you your whole life. Tarun Yojana gives kids a jumpstart on building wealth to make better money decisions later.
3. MITRA: Helping Investors Track & Retrieve Investments
MITRA (Mutual Fund Investment Tracing and Retrieval Assistant) is an initiative to help investors locate, recover, and claim their lost, dormant, or forgotten mutual fund investments.
Over the years, many investors have misplaced investment details due to improper record-keeping, address changes, or even the death of the original investor. MITRA acts as a bridge between investors and asset management companies (AMCs) to ensure that unclaimed funds are rightfully retrieved.
Why is MITRA Important?
Many investors, especially those who started investing before digital records became common, might have investments they no longer track. Some common reasons include:
🔹 Investments made years ago but forgotten over time
🔹 Physical statements misplaced or lost due to relocation
🔹 Changes in email, phone number, or KYC details leading to unclaimed investments
🔹 Legal heirs unaware of investments made by deceased family members
MITRA simplifies the tracing and retrieving of such investments, ensuring investors or their rightful heirs gain access to their funds.
Key Features of MITRA
✅ Locating Dormant or Unclaimed Mutual Fund Units
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- Helps investors track investments across multiple AMCs using PAN, folio numbers, and investor details.
- Identifies inactive or unclaimed units lying in different mutual funds.
✅ Assisting Legal Heirs in Claiming Investments
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- Guides nominees and legal heirs through the claim process in case the original investor dies.
- Ensures proper documentation is submitted for smooth claim settlement.
✅ Enhancing Transparency in Mutual Fund Investments
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- Promotes financial awareness by ensuring investors have a consolidated view of their holdings.
- Reduces unclaimed investments by encouraging periodic review and updating of records.
✅ Easy Online Access & Support
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- Investors can initiate a search request online with basic details like PAN, Aadhaar, or registered mobile number.
- Dedicated helpline and support for resolving investment-related queries.
How MITRA Works?
1️⃣ Investor or Nominee Initiates a Request: The investor or their nominee submits a request via the MITRA portal with relevant details (PAN, name, registered phone number, etc.).
2️⃣ Database Search & Verification: MITRA scans, such as those performed by CAMS and multiple AMCs, and Registrar-Transfer Agents (RTAs), such as those performed by CAMS and KFintech, identify dormant or unclaimed investments.
3️⃣ Claim Process Assistance: Once investments are located, investors receive detailed guidance on how to claim their units. Legal heirs are assisted with documentation such as death certificates, succession certificates, and KYC updates to access the rightful funds.
4️⃣ Funds Are Retrieved & Transferred: After verification, the units are transferred to the rightful investor’s account, restoring lost investments.
How Can You Benefit from MITRA?
🔹 Forgotten investments? Retrieve them easily with a simple search.
🔹 Legal heir to an investor? Get step-by-step assistance in claiming rightful funds.
🔹 Changed your address or contact details? If so, ensure your records are current to avoid losing track of your investments.
🔹 Want to secure your family’s financial future? Keep your mutual fund records updated and accessible for your nominees.
💡 Don’t let your investments go unclaimed!
4. Why These Initiatives Matter
🔹 Chhoti SIP lowers the entry barrier, making investing affordable for everyone.
🔹 Tarun Yojana builds a financially educated generation from an early age.
🔹 MITRA ensures that investments are never lost and rightful owners can claim them easily.
These new things make mutual funds simpler and more helpful so that more people can save for their future.
5. How a Mutual Fund Distributor (MFD) Can Help
Getting advice from a mutual fund distributor ensures you get personalised recommendations based on your unique financial needs.
Want to start your investment journey? Contact VSJ FinMart today for expert guidance on mutual fund investments!
📢 Disclaimer
Mutual fund investments are subject to market risks, so read all scheme-related documents carefully before investing. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The information provided in this blog is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. Investors should consult their financial advisors before making any investment decisions. VSJ FinMart is an AMFI-registered mutual fund distributor (MFD) that does not provide portfolio management or stock advisory services.