Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana better than PPF?

Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana better than PPF? | Sukanya Yojna Vs PPF 

Sukanya Samriddhi Accounts Scheme Details / Benefits

• Rate of interest 9.1% Per Annum(2014-15),calculated on yearly basis ,Yearly compounded.

• Minimum INR. 1000/-and Maximum INR. 1,50,000/- in a financial year. Subsequent deposit in multiple of INR 100/- Deposits can be made in lump-sum No limit on number of deposits either in a month or in a Financial year

• A legal Guardian/Natural Guardian can open account in the name of Girl Child.

• A guardian can open only one account in the name of one girl child and maximum two accounts in the name of two different Girl children.

• Account can be opened up to age of 10 years only from the date of birth. For initial operations of Scheme, one year grace has been given. With the grace, Girl child who is born between 2.12.2003 &1.12.2004 can open account up to1.12.2015.

• If minimum Rs 1000/- is not deposited in a financial year, account will become discontinued and can be revived with a penalty of Rs 50/- per year with minimum amount required for deposit for that year.

• Partial withdrawal, maximum up to 50% of balance standing at the end of the preceding financial year can be taken after Account holder’s attaining age of 18 years.

• Account can be closed after completion of 21 years.

• If account is not closed after maturity, balance will continue to earn interest as specified for the scheme from time to time.

• Normal Premature closer will be allowed after completion of 18 years /provided that girl is married. 

Thinking of investing in the PPF and fixed deposits for your little daughter's education or marriage? The Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana (SSY) could be a better alternative. The scheme, which was launched in January as part of the Prime Minister's Beti Bachao Beti Padhao initiative, was already eligible for deduction under Section 80C. The Budget has now made the income from the scheme tax free.

The SSY is more attractive than the PPF because it offers a higher interest rate. The interest rate of the SSY is also linked to the government bond yield. While the PPF offers 25 basis points higher than the yield of 10-year government bonds, the SSY will offer 75 basis points higher than the 10-year government bond yield for the previous year (which was 8.33% for 1 April, 2013 to 31 March, 2014). For 2014-15, the interest for PPF is 8.7% while the SSY offers 9.1%. Budget 2015: Is the Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana better than PPF? Though the SSY is an attractive proposition, the scheme is not open to everybody. An SSY account can be opened by the parent or guardian in the name of a girl child not more than 10 years old. Only for this year, the government has offered a grace period of one year and allowed accounts to be opened for girls who will be 11 years old by 1 December 2015. Children born before 2 December 2003 are not eligible. 

How to open an SSY account:

Accounts can be opened in any post office or designated branches of PSU banks with a minimum of Rs 1,000. The maximum investment in a year is Rs 1.5 lakh and deposits can be made for 14 years. A parent can open an account for a maximum of two daughters, but the combined investment cannot exceed Rs 1.5 lakh a year. The account matures when the girl turns 21, though up to 50% of the corpus can be withdrawn after she is 18 or gets married.