In light of the evolving payments ecosystem in the country, the apex bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), came up with the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) in June 2020. It came into effect from January 1, 2021.
Objective: The main objective of the PIDF scheme is to increase the number of acceptance devices multi-fold in the country, especially in tier-3 to tier-6 cities and special focus areas like the North Eastern states and Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
Funding: The RBI made an initial contribution of Rs 250 crore to the scheme, and it aims to increase the payment acceptance infrastructure by adding 30 lakh touch points, including 10 lakh physical and 20 lakh digital payment acceptance devices every year.
Beneficiaries: The scheme is expected to benefit acquiring banks/non-banks and merchants by lowering the overall acceptance infrastructure costs.
Duration: The scheme was operationalized in January 2021 and was initially valid for three years, with a possibility of extension for another two years, which has been done, extending it till December 2025.
Monitoring: The implementation of targets under PIDF is monitored by the RBI, MRO with assistance from Card networks, the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA), and the Payments Council of India (PCI).
The scheme shall target:
Creation of payment acceptance infra in Tier-3 to Tier-6 centers;
The scheme shall also cover eligible street vendors who are part of the PM Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi Scheme) in Tier-1 and Tier-2 centers;
The North Eastern states, together with the UTs of J&K and Ladakh, shall be given special attention;
Merchants that do not have any payment acceptance infra.
It envisages creating 30 lakh new touch points every year for digital payments, including 10 lakh physical and 20 lakh digital payment acceptance devices. As of August 2023, over 2.66 crore new touchpoints have been deployed under the scheme.
As this scheme is extended till December 2025, the beneficiaries of PM Vishwakarma scheme nationwide have been incorporated as merchants eligible for the deployment under PIDF.
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