Changing Lives
The $6.3 billion saved was then distributed to
customers in rural areas without access to
clean cooking gas. The Ujjwala Scheme directly
or indirectly impact multiple SDGs including
SDG 3 (Good Health and Well Being), SDG 5
(Gender Equality), SDG 7 (Affordable and
Clean Energy) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice
and Strong Institutions).
Another example is the Micro Units
Development & Refinance Agency (MUDRA).
This institution is aimed at providing loans to
micro and small enterprises, with credit needs
below $14,000. Under the MUDRA scheme,
155.6 million loans amounting to $101.26
billion have been disbursed. About 75 per cent
of the recipients are women. The MUDRA
scheme impacts the SDG 8 (Decent Work and
Economic Growth) and the SDG 9 (Industry,
Innovation and Infrastructure).
The National Payments Corporation of India
(NPCI) threw its hat in the ring once again,
with the introduction of two vital schemes.
I allude, of course, to the Immediate Payment
Service (IMPS) and the Unified Payments
Interface (UPI). The former (for which I was, as
vritti
January 2020
9
a happy coincidence, involved in establishing
the standards) provides 24×7 real-time
interbank electronic fund transfer. The Unified
Payments Interface (UPI) powers multiple
bank accounts into a single mobile application
(of any participating bank). Of course, several
banking features, seamless fund routing and
merchant payments are all merged under one
hood. UPI allows users to create a unique
virtual address (like abc@xyzbank) and use it
for transferring money and make payments
from devices such as mobile handsets. The
IMPS and UPI have 498 and 141 participating
banks respectively. Over the last one year,
(from September 2018 to August 2019) IMPS
and UPI have collectively processed 10.26
billion transactions, valuing $465.66 billion.
Clearly, progress has been marching on in
India, with (hopefully) no signs of flagging.
I would like to conclude by stating that technology
ought to be invested in “for the greater good”.
Digital technologies ought to encompass every
section of society and every individual. No
holds barred, of course.
About the author
Srinivas Nidugondi has over 21 years of experience in various industries including
financial services, payments and commerce in a variety of business and product related
roles and most recently with a specific focus on enabling banking, payments and related
services through digital channels. At Comviva he heads the Mobile Financial Solutions
business unit, which currently has over 130 deployments globally, providing services for
more than one billion consumers.