New Delhi: Traders’ organisations have withdrawn their October 2 “No UPI Day” protest after meeting Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, following assurances that their concerns over proposed merchant payment charges would receive consideration.
Around 20 trade representatives from states attended the meeting on Wednesday, September 30. They raised concerns about a proposed 0.4 per cent fee on merchant UPI transactions exceeding Rs 2,000.
Traders Flag Business Costs
The delegation was led by Praveen Khandelwal, Chandni Chowk MP and secretary general of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT).
Representatives said the proposed charge could add to costs for small and medium businesses and discourage merchants from accepting digital payments. They sought clarity on the fee and urged the government to consider the trading community’s concerns.
The All India Consumer Products Federation and the All India Mobile Retailers Association had called for the protest on October 2.
Dialogue Prompts Withdrawal
Speaking after the meeting, Khandelwal said the organisations withdrew their call following constructive discussions and assurances that the issues raised would receive due consideration.
He said traders were encouraged by the dialogue and would continue discussions with the government. The bodies remain hopeful that their concerns will be addressed before implementation.
According to the report, the proposed fee remains scheduled to take effect on October 15, despite the withdrawal of the protest.
NPCI Explains GST Impact
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) had earlier rejected reports suggesting that GST on UPI Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) would burden small merchants and make digital payments costly.
In the statement cited in the report, NPCI said MDR applies only to person-to-merchant transactions above Rs 2,000. Payments up to that amount continue to attract zero MDR and consequently no GST on MDR.
Government data cited in the report indicates that payments of up to Rs 2,000 account for more than 96 per cent of UPI merchant transaction volume, leaving most payments outside the stated charge.
