Enabling offline payments are critical in embracing the Digital India dream comprehensively. Discuss (200 Words)
Refer - Financial Express
Enrich the answer from other sources, if the question demands.
IAS Parliament 3 years
KEY POINTS
· For a country such as India, characterised by sheer size and uneven regional development, access to amenities such as the internet is underlined by glaring differences.
· This scenario has been a barrier in India’s vision to become a digital society, especially in the area of digital payments, as these methods require a working network/telecom connection at the merchant’s or customer’s end.
· An offline digital payment can be done without the need for any internet or telecom connectivity. Such payments can be done using any existing payments modes, such as cards, wallets, mobile devices etc.
· These measures will help reduce any fraud risk that may arise from allowing offline transactions, which are being processed without any Additional Factor of Authentication. Customers will also enjoy existing protections on limiting customer liability in case of any disputed transaction.
· Technologies such as NFC will allow offline payments without high charges incurred in USSD mode. SIM overlay is another potential solution, where payment functionalities are enabled on SIM card, allowing offline payments.
· Nearly 70% of India’s rural population and 33% urban population is yet to adopt digital means of payments. For the country to fully embrace the Digital India dream, enabling offline payments will be critical given the boost it can give for digital payments.
Manish 3 years
Please Review !
IAS Parliament 3 years
Good attempt. Keep Writing.
