A recent report of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) brings forth the dichotomy between digital divide and India’s transition towards a cashless economy. The rural-urban divide in access to computer and internet is quite stark, according to the report entitled 'Key Indicators of Household Social Consumption on Education in India, July 2017 to June 2018'.   The 75th round National Sample Survey (NSS) report on education finds that...

-The Times of India CHENNAI: If demonetisation was a push for a cashless economy, it has been working very slowly. Reserve Bank of India data shows the usage of wallets, non-UPI banking apps and Aadhaar-enabled payments has been slow to catch on, while that of debit cards has fallen. The UPI payments have been growing, and a significant chunk of them are mobile-based. Overall, electronic payments stood at Rs 200 trillion in...

-Livemint.com Cash scarcity led to a spike in digital payments post demonetisation, but the trend reversed as remonetisation picked up pace New Delhi: Soon after demonetisation was announced on 8 November last year, it was projected as part of a broader push towards a cashless economy. Several ministers and government officials claimed that this would nudge Indians to rely on non-cash or digital payments. In the weeks and months following demonetisation, digital payments...

-Livemint.com Digital transactions rose 13.5%—from Rs109.82 trillion in August to Rs124.69 trillion in September, the second highest for a month since the demonetisation exercise New Delhi: Digital transactions in September rose to the second highest monthly level by value since the government’s demonetisation exercise in November. Transactions through digital means rose 13.5% to Rs124.69 trillion in September from Rs109.82 trillion in August, according to provisional data released on Wednesday by the Reserve Bank...

-The Indian Express Demonetisation: On digital transactions, too, RBI data shows that the volume of electronic payments, after peaking in December 2016 at 957.50 million transactions compared with 671.49 million in November, has been on a decline. New Delhi: When it launched the currency withdrawal in November, the NDA government had outlined four key objectives of the demonetisation exercise: detection of black money, elimination of fake currency, squeezing funds available for...