Digital transactions taken up out of compulsion, not convenience: FM Jaitley

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday stated that digitization was given a nudge as many adopted to it out of compulsion rather than convenience, which eventually developed a habit.

"After the November 8 demonetization drive, many went in for digitisation out of compulsion rather than convenience, which eventually created a habit. We attained a peak growth figure, which, although has seen a marginal slip, will pick up again. In addition to UPI and other measures, there will be a major advancement in the shift to a cashless economy, and will reflect upon the spending habit of people," he said while speaking at the launch of Google's 'Tez' digital payment app.

While the 'notebandi' came as a shock to many, Jaitley said that the debate has seen a drastic involvement over the last few months. Most importantly, there has been a squeeze in the volume of high currency denominations, and is projected to continue in the natural course of the economy.

"Earlier, the need for finding alternatives to a high cash economy was not at the center of our economic agenda, and was not taken very seriously and discussed in Parliament. We got into the habit of living in a high cash economy and payed the costs involved," said Jaitley.

"There are three ways in which I see the analysis-the volume of cash being printed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI); how much of an increase is witnessed in digital transactions; and how much are we able to expand tax assesses and bases of direct and indirect taxes," he added.

The Google team, Jaitley stated, saw immense potential in tapping the digital payments market, and was very keen in helping finding alternatives to cash payment.

"Technology evolution has made the app the simplest form of monetary transaction. With the need to find alternative solutions to cash transactions, the Google team was very keen on exploring this and saw immense potential," he said.

Google on Monday launched its 'Make in India' digital payments App 'Tez' for consumers to ease the simplicity of banking transactions.

The app comes with enhanced security features, which secures account details, phone and UPI details. It also supports spam detection feature that can help cut down fraudulent activities.

Tez users can also book and pay for tickets through the app to Redbus, order food, and so on. (ANI)