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HomeTechModi govt plans Digital Payment campaign with Google, PayPal, Mastercard as partners

Modi govt plans Digital Payment campaign with Google, PayPal, Mastercard as partners

IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad urged Google to use its technology to help take India’s digital economy to $1 trillion.

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New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government joined hands with search engine giant Google and other payment service providers Thursday to roll out ‘Digital Payment Abhiyan’ for the purpose of increasing awareness about cashless payment and online financial security.

The campaign was announced in the presence of Information Technology (IT) Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad at a Google-organised event, ‘Google for India’.

With this, Google has gone a step ahead in expanding its payments service to its users in India. Other payment service providers, which partnered with the government, included National Payments Corporation of India, Axis Bank, BharatPe, GPay, which is Google’s own payment service, PayPal, Mastercard and Visa.

Prasad urged Google to use its technology to help take India’s digital economy to $1 trillion by contributing to avenues like “digital payments, digital services, e-commerce in various forms”.

“…We are very keen to make India one trillion-dollar digital economy,” he added.

WhatsApp yet to get nod for launching its payments service

Meanwhile, WhatsApp is yet to receive the government’s approval to expand its payments service in India. Currently, the Facebook-owned messaging app runs its payments service on a pilot basis.

WhatsApp is, at present, under the scanner of the Supreme Court for data localisation. The top court had asked the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in August to report on whether WhatsApp had complied with data localisation norms as it gears up to launch its payments service.

An advocate, privy to the case, told ThePrint on condition of anonymity that the RBI is likely to respond to the SC in November.

The government and Facebook also continue to be “at odds” over traceability of messages on WhatsApp. Nick Clegg, Facebook’s vice-president of global affairs and communications, reportedly met Home Minister Amit Shah, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Prasad recently during which the issue was discussed.

‘Google Pay for Business’ launched

At the event, Google announced the launch of another payments service  ‘Google Pay for Business’ to cater to small and medium merchants in an apparent bid to give competition to WhatsApp.

Google also announced an increase in its investment in Artificial Intelligence (AI). In a press statement, the tech giant said it is setting up ‘Google Research India’ lab in Bengaluru to advance “India’s knowledge in AI”.

This apart, Google is increasing its efforts in providing Wi-Fi to the people and has partnered with BSNL to make the wireless internet facility available in villages of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Bihar, according to the press statement.

It also launched ‘The Vodafone-Idea Phone Line’ to help people in the rural areas, where internet connection is weak, get information about everything. Vodafone-Idea users can dial toll-free number, 000 800 9191 000, and seek information, which will be provided to them by Google via the phone call.

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2 COMMENTS

  1. What’s wrong with Cashless Transaction*_..?

    *A*:- _Sir think th’at a 100 rupee note is circulated 1,00,000 times it will have the same value, nobody gets any commission_.

    _But if it is circulated through cashless transactions, each transaction fetches *2.5%* commission, that means 1,00,000 times 2.5% = 2500% i.e. Rs. 2,50,000 (Rs. Two Lakhs fifty thousand Rupees) to service providers like Paytm or Jio Money etc. *Just for hundred rupees*_.

    _So, it’s a perpetual golden egg laying goose gifted to the gang_.

    _That’s why this is the *Mother of all scams* Very important statistics please read & understand, no politics in this_.

    *Do you know*…

    1) _Debit Cards charge between 0.5% to 1% to the retailer Or money receiver for every transaction_.

    2) _Credit Cards charge beteen 1.5%-2.5% to the retailer of the money receiver for every transaction_.

    3) _PayTM/Freecharge/ Jio Money and other E-wallets charger 2.5% -3.5% when you want to transfer your e-wallet money into your bank a/c_.

    _RBI data shows that every month around 2.25 lakh crore (Anually Rs 25 -30 lakh crores) is withdrawn from ATM’s across India. And it is estimated that along with bank withdrawals, a total of Rs 75 lakh crore is withdrawn ( both banks and ATMs) on a yearly basis. All this is accounted/tax-payed money which is withdrawn from banks. Currently, just 3% of transactions are in electronic mode_…

    _If this 75 lakh crore is converted into a *#cashlesseconomy*, look at how much the companies will earn.. (75 lakh crores times 2% average) Rs 1.5 lakh crore per year!_…
    *NO KIDDING!*

    _*This is the biggest open scam. Direct benefit for Corporates like Reliance, PayTM, e-Banks etc. of Rs 1.5 lakh crores per year*_…

    _This makes me wonder, was Demonetization done to end black money or was it actually done to benefit the big corporates

    • Cash economy cost of running bank for cash deposit and withdrawal, cost of ATM running, cost of note printing and safety of cash carrying, delivery and storing. no accounting, corruption. So this cost will be much more than charge by agencies facilitating digital payment. Charges can be brought down and can be waived for very samll transaction.

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