look news india
Amidst the viral news of ‘No UPI Day’ being celebrated across the country on October 2, the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, tying black cloth on the QR code stands installed at shops and doing transactions only in cash, a big and official clarification from Indian business organizations has come out. Social media and some reports were claiming that retailers are going to conduct a complete boycott on October 2 in protest against the proposed Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) and technical problems on the Unified Payments Interface (UPI). This news created an atmosphere of panic among crores of online payment users and consumers preparing for festive shopping. Now the country’s largest trader confederation ‘Confederation of All India Traders’ (CAIT) and major retail unions have come forward and said in clear words that they have not made any formal call for any such nationwide ‘No UPI Day’ and this is merely an illusion spread on social media.
Top officials of CAIT and major trade chambers of the country including Delhi, Mumbai, Lucknow, Jaipur have clarified the position and said that the organization is not at all against digital transactions. Trader representatives said, “We have not even taken any official announcement or decision to observe any kind of ‘No UPI Day’ on October 2 or to cover the QR code with black cloth. This rumor has been spread by some local groups or on the basis of viral baseless messages on social media, which has created unnecessary confusion among the general public and small shopkeepers.”
Business leaders underlined that today’s Indian retail market cannot function without UPI. In sectors like grocery, textiles, sweets and electronics, 70 to 80 percent of customers go out for shopping only with the help of smartphones, without carrying purses in their pockets. In such a situation, the move to close UPI at the cusp of the festive season would be like hitting an ax in the feet of the merchants.
Although the merchant unions have denied the news of boycott of ‘No UPI Day’, they have also made it clear that they have some real and legitimate concerns regarding the digital payments ecosystem, which need to be addressed by the government and the Department of Financial Services (DFS):
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Hidden charges of fintech companies: The unions allege that various third-party apps are taking arbitrary deductions of Rs 100 to 150 every month in the name of soundbox rental.
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Server failure during peak hours: Due to bank servers being down during the festive rush, customers’ money gets deducted and does not reach the shopkeeper. As it takes 48 to 72 hours to resolve disputes, the working capital of small shopkeepers gets stuck.
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Doubt regarding MDR framework to be implemented from October 15: There is apprehension among retailers regarding the new rules proposed by the government on UPI transactions of more than Rs 2,000 from October 15.
Amidst these concerns of merchants, the Central Government and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) have already officially assured that normal bank-to-bank UPI transactions will remain at zero fee (Zero MDR) as usual.
According to data, more than 96% of the country’s retail payments are of less than ₹2,000, which will not attract any charges even after October 15. Additionally, small traders with monthly turnover up to Rs 1 lakh are fully exempted. Big retailers and corporate establishments are also not allowed to recover any part of the charges from customers.
After this new statement of the unions, it has become clear that digital payments will be completely normal across the country on the day of Gandhi Jayanti (2 October). Online payments will not be stopped at any shop, mall or petrol pump, nor will consumers have to stand in queues at ATMs to withdraw cash. Merchant organizations have appealed to all their members not to pay attention to any unverified messages and continue to provide cashless and convenient digital experience to customers during the festive season.