Niti Aayog’s suggestions to boost digital payment | Fusion - WeRIndia

Majority of Indians are still suffering with a cash crunch in the country as some of them did not have enough equipment and technology to go digital while others do not have awareness on using alternative methods.

The rest are opting for cash as most of the traders are not encouraging electronic methods for various reasons.

In order to boost digital modes of payment in the country, Niti Aayog, the government’s policy think tank suggested various methods as part of a report being prepared by it to increase digital payments in the country.

These methods also help in reducing cash payments.

Niti Aayog recommended government to consider providing tax incentives to those who utilize digital modes of payments and penalize cash transaction to solve the country’s money problem. This is a situation of win-win.

At present, merchants are charging additional amount for digital transactions by customers.

Even certain rules of government led to additional service tax or transaction charge on online payments which discourages citizens to use these modes of payment.

If digital payments are encouraged by eliminating all forms of charges and taxes on them, majority of citizens will turn to them.

At the same time, cash payments should be discouraged by levying penalty, says Niti Aayog so that using cash would be reduced in the country.

Niti Aayog suggested to seek ways to scrap all rules to encourage digital payments.

More than half of adult Indians have bank accounts which can go for digital mode of payments.

Yet, 98 per cent of transactions are being made in cash with only 11 per cent of consumers using their debit card in last year as majority retailers did not accept cards.

NIti Aayog also suggested to make changes in the warehousing act which includes manufactured goods. It helps facilitating vendors to sell their products online and also get loans against inventory.

Currently only farmers who store their food grains in warehouses can raise loans against their stocks.

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