CH NEWS, MANGALURU
The Central Government’s proposal to levy fees on UPI transactions contradicts the core objectives of the ‘Digital India’ initiative and risks derailing the nation’s digital economy, stated Dakshina Kannada District Congress Committee President Padmaraj R. Poojary on Wednesday.
Issuing a press statement, Poojary condemned the move as an administrative betrayal of public trust. He noted that authorities initially persuaded citizens and small vendors to embrace cashless methods by promoting UPI as a completely free, fast, and accessible service. However, introducing transaction costs now—after small retailers and common consumers have integrated digital platforms into everyday commerce—reveals a troubling inconsistency in central economic policy.
Poojary dismissed official claims that the proposed merchant discount rate (MDR) would affect only business entities and spare end-users. He argued that shopkeepers cannot absorb these extra overheads and will naturally pass the burden on to buyers by raising retail prices on groceries, vegetables, cooking gas, and daily essentials. Moreover, such taxation creates uncertainty among street vendors and micro-enterprises. If confusing levies push traders to abandon cashless methods and revert to physical currency, it will deliver a severe setback to economic transparency.
The Congress leader emphasized that a dependable, high-speed payment infrastructure like UPI should receive institutional backing rather than restrictive fee structures. Backing concerns raised by Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, Poojary noted that merchant levies inevitably drain household budgets through inflated retail costs. He urged the Union Government to immediately withdraw the proposed transaction fees to protect everyday consumers and small merchants.
