Package for Promotion of Digital and Cashless Economy

Package for Promotion of Digital and Cashless Economy

To accelerate the process of Cashless movement , the Central Government has decided on a package of incentives and measures for promotion of digital and cashless economy in the country after cancellation of the legal tender character of old 500 & 1000 notes.

These incentives/measures are following:

1. Discount at the rate of 0.75% of the sale price to consumers on purchase of petrol/diesel if payment is made through digital means at Central Government Petroleum PSUs.

Currently nearly 4.5 crore customers buy petrol or diesel at such petrol pumps per day who can take benefit of this incentive scheme. It is estimated that petrol/diesel worth Rs.1800 crore is sold per day to the customers out of which nearly 20% was being paid through digital means.

In the month of November 2016 it has increased to 40% and the cash transaction of Rs.360 crore per day have got shifted to cashless transaction methods. The incentive scheme has the potential of shifting at least 30% more customer to digital means which will further reduce the cash requirement of nearly Rs. 2 lakh crore per year at the petrol pumps.

2. To expand digital payment infrastructure in rural areas, the Central Government through NABARD will extend financial support to eligible banks for deployment of 2 POSdevices each in 1 Lakh villages with population of less than 10,000. These POS machines are intended to be deployed at primary cooperative societies/milk societies/agricultural input dealers to facilitate agri-related transactions through digital means.

This will benefit farmers of one lakh village covering a total population of nearly 75 crore who will have facility to transact cashlessly in their villages for their agri needs.

3. The Central Government through NABARD will also support Rural Regional Banks and Cooperative Banks to issue “Rupay Kisan Cards” to 4.32 crore Kisan.