MSRTC launches digital payment facility in buses, BFSI News, ET BFSI

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Passengers can now pay for bus fares of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) using UPIs.

Embracing the long-pending digital reform, the state transportation on Monday announced that over 34,000 Android-based ticketing machines have been issued to bus conductors across Maharashtra to accept payment through UPI.

MSRTC spokesperson Abhijit Bhosale said over 55 lakh passengers use the bus services of the state transportation and many of them will benefit from the facility.

“The facility of UPI payment will do away with the hassle associated with exchanging cash while giving tickets. At times, disputes also take place over the return of the money, which will no longer take place,” he said.

The MSRTC has a fleet of over 14,000 buses that make daily trips across Maharashtra and also across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Gujarat. MSRTC divisional controller for Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Sachin Kshirsagar said the rollout of UPI payment on buses was made from Monday.

“While digital payment is now accepted across buses, passengers also have the option of making payment through cash in a traditional manner. The reform has been implemented smoothly without any glitches on day one,” he said. Prashant Beedkar, a frequent traveller, said the MSRTC was expected to accept digital payment gateways immediately post-Covid pandemic.

“While the pandemic period saw an unexpected push for digital payment across the country, the MSRTC stuck to the traditional method. The state transportation has finally accepted digital system of payment, offering relief to passengers,” he said. The MSRTC authorities said they were expecting a good collection using UPI payment in urban as well as rural areas.

“UPI is widely used these days. The digital payment will minimize the load of carrying cash towards sale of tickets,” Bhosale said.

We also published the following articles recently

Now, MSRTC passengers can pay for ticket fares digitally during journeyMaharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) introduces UPI payment system for bus tickets. Passengers can pay fares digitally via mobile phone. MSRTC signs MoU with Airtel payment banks for UPI payments. Conductors issue electronic tickets with QR codes for passengers to scan and make digital payments. MSRTC also introduces helpline for passengers facing payment issues.

UPI limit for healthcare & education payments hiked to 5 lakhRBI governor Shaktikanta Das announced an increase in the limit for UPI transactions for hospitals and education services to Rs 5 lakh from Rs 1 lakh. The limit for recurring digital payments without second-factor authentication was also enhanced from Rs 15,000 to Rs 1 lakh for mutual fund subscription, insurance premium, and card bills. The RBI will create a repository for fintechs to store important information about their products, technology, and financial details. The Reserve Bank Innovation Hub aims to make the repository operational by April 2024.

RBI enhances UPI transaction limit for these payments, industry welcomes the moveThe Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced a substantial increase in the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transaction limit, boosting digital payments. The new limit is Rs 5 lakh, up from Rs 1 lakh. This change enables users to make larger payments for healthcare and education expenses through UPI. The RBI also raised the e-mandate cap for recurring payments from Rs 15,000 to Rs 1 lakh, encouraging the use of e-mandates. Bankers, payment companies, and hospitals welcome the increase in UPI payments and e-mandate caps, promoting digital payment channels.