Abstract
Financial inclusion means universal access to a wide range of financial services at a reasonable cost. Microfinance means the provision of microloans to poor entrepreneurs and small businesses lacking access to banking and related services. Microfinance is a way to promote economic development, employment and growth through the support of micro-entrepreneurs and small businesses; for others, it is a way for the poor to manage their finances more effectively and take advantage of economic opportunities while managing the risks. The terms have evolved - from micro-credit to micro-finance, and now 'financial inclusion'. Ujjivan Small Finance Bank Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ujjivan Financial Services Ltd. Ujjivan commenced its banking operations in February 2017 when it transitioned from a NBFC-MFI to a Small Finance Bank. It attained a Scheduled Bank status in August 2017. With State-of-the-art technology, Ujjivan Small Finance Bank (SFB) is pioneering better banking for its consumers by offering a whole host of benefits. UJJIVAN provided a lot of small Financial Services in the rural sector in India. The researcher attempted to study the role of UJJIVAN Financing among rural people with special reference to Alappuzha. The main objectives of the study included identifying the level of finance availability and the financial problems of the rural people in Alappuzha, studying the role of UJJIVAN finance in
inclusive financing among the rural people in Alappuzha, suggesting measures to achieve overall inclusive financing among rural people in Alappuzha. For the research purpose, both primary data and secondary data are used. Primary data are collected by using questionnaires, schedules, interviews,s, etc… secondary data are used from journals, magazines, newspapers, etc. In this study, the sample unit is considered a rural area in Alappuzha. The sample size refers to the number of items to be selected from the universe to constitute a sample. Here the sample size taken for the study is 100 respondents from the place of Alappuzha. The sampling procedure used in the study is random sampling. If the demand for and supply of financial services are not proper, it leads to financial instability in the country. In other words, some factors are highly influencing the financial inclusion process in India. If such factors are not proper, then it will affect the financial inclusion process in India. Whether the microfinance programs support or not the financial inclusion process will be the research problem. The study on the problem was conducted by collecting, analyzing, and interpreting both secondary and primary data. From the study, it is very clear that UJJIVAN Small Financing has a high role in supporting the financial inclusion process. The study also mentioned some measures for the overall achievement of financial inclusion.
Keywords; Financial inclusion, Small financing, UJJIVAN, financial exclusion, financial literacy, financial inclusion, and exclusion factors.
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