All payments to and from the government will have to be online; BJP-ruled civic bodies already in motion to go completely digital
The Centre has directed the Delhi government to adopt immediate measures to discourage cash transactions and to ensure that people shift to digital modes of payment.
Taking forward its demonetization initiative, the Union government has issued an order to all its Union Territories, including Delhi, to switch to digital modes of payment. Apart from the government departments, the BJP-run civic agencies are also attempting to go cashless by the coming financial year, sources said.
"The option to go cashless is to be encouraged for all government transactions. In addition, all payments from the government's side have to be cashless," said a Delhi government official. "The officials are already checking the modalities and the Deputy Commissioners have been asked to create awareness and sensitise people in their respective districts," he added.
Many officials, however, said that these orders have come from the Union government, and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government is yet to take an official stance regarding the matter.
Once the plan is fully implemented, consumers and residents in the National Capital Region will be able to pay for all utilities, including electricity, water, taxes, and even traffic fines, online. Even the government-run liquor stores will accept payment through cards or online transactions. At present, discoms in Delhi are accepting cash payment for electricity bills of less than Rs 5,000.
"As per our data, almost 98 per cent payments made towards the Delhi government will be cashless by the year-end. We are already collecting nearly 95 per cent Value Added Tax (VAT) through banks only. Among other things being finalised, the government may make it mandatory for VAT to be accepted only through online transactions after December 31," said a government official.
Meanwhile, the civic bodies are also leaving no stone unturned to make the demonetization drive a success.
The BJP-ruled municipal corporations decided to go 100 per cent cashless on Wednesday. The east corporation, a part of the trifurcated municipal corporation of Delhi, will be the first one to move in this direction. Keeping in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's push for a cashless economy, the civic body plans to go fully digital by April 2017.
East corporation Commissioner Mohanjeet Singh had called a meeting of heads of all the departments to discuss the modalities of the project. The initiative will be carried out by the IT and Finance Departments of the corporation.
"The corporation will receive all the payments digitally, including property tax, licence fee, parking fee, booking of community halls and other places for weddings and other events, among others. We hope to secure the systems by December 31, " Singh said.
Initially, the staffers will be given training to use these systems, and they can come up with queries. The corporation has already organised one such session to make its staff of over 20,000 employees familiar with the digital modes of payments.
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