Union Bank of India to join National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC)

          Union Bank of India has finally decided to join the National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) bandwagon.  

Union Bank of India’s Head-Digital Banking has floated a REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) for  ‘Selection of Vendor for Implementation of National Electronic Toll Collection (NETC) -Acquiring on OPEX Model’, in September 2018

          Union Bank of India, a Public Sector Bank has its Head Office at 239, Vidhan Bhavan Marg, Union Bank Bhavan, Nariman Point, Mumbai – 400021,and it’s its Digital Banking Department is in the same building on the  7th Floor.

Union Bank of India has a physical presence through its 4200+ branches spread across the country.

Bank has implemented a Core Banking Solution covering all its branches and also extends services to its customers via number of delivery channels like ATM, e-banking, Mobile banking, IMPS , POS, Debit/Credit Cards, Unified Payment Interface (UPI) , Union Selfie &Mpassbook, Ucontrol App for credit cards, Payment Gateway & Access control server solution, Bhim Aadhar, Bharat QR etc.

Now, seeing the potential of NETC, Union Bank of India too has decided to join the same.

Let us wait and see the benefits of NETC to Union Bank of India

Paytm Payments Bank encourages Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to join BBPS

Er. Baldev Singh Sran   CMD PSPCL   said that with the support of electricity consumers, on July 16,2018, PSPCL has achieved a landmark in digital collections by collecting Rs. 220 crore on a single day.

During July, 2018, 45.43% of total electricity collections of PSPCL has been received through digital modes, which is the highest record of digital collection in this segment in our country.

          In May 2017, PSPCL partnered with Paytm to allow its 90 lac+ consumers to pay their electricity bills through the PAYTM APP.

          This digital payment mode was in addition to the facilities of ePayments  on PSPCL  website, through Debit Card, Credit Card, Net Banking etc.

          Speaking on the partnership, Principal Secy.Power ,Punjab Govt.cum Chairman & Managing Director of PSPCL & PSTCL Sh. A Venu Prasad, IAS said, PSPCL has already given the facilities of E-payment on its website, through Debit Card, Credit Card, Net Banking etc.

With the view to further promote online collection of electricity bills, PSPCL is happy to collaborate with Paytm to enable quick, seamless and easy bill payment experience. Consumers can tap on the  Electricity icon in their Paytm App, choose Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) as their preferred electricity utility, enter their consumer number and can make the payment instantly in few steps.

Taking this partnership further, Paytm Payments Bank has assisted to PSPCL to join the BBPS (Bharat Bill Payment System) channel.

The main advantage of BBPS is ‘Anywhere, Anytime’, Bills Payments.

PSPCL consumers need not search PSPCL collection centres to pay their bills, instead they can visit any BBPS collection centre and pay their bills.

BBPS counters accept cash payments too, this enables consumers to pay their bills in cash too without any geographical restrictions.

A wage-earner in Kerala can pay his/her family’s PSPCL electricity bill from Kerala itself by visiting the BBPS counter. This reduces the friction in bill payments and boosts bill payments within the due dates.

Speaking on the partnership between Paytm Payments Bank, BBPS and PSPCL, Punjab’s Minister for Power, New and Renewable Sources of Energy Sardar Gurpreet Singh Kangar said: “We are happy to note that consumers of Punjab State would be benefited with ease of bill payment service via Bharat BillPay.

This gives power and control to the consumer to pay bills of PSPCL or any bill across India via their preferred app/website enabled on Bharat BillPay at one location. This will also facilitate the digital India initiative as consumers will have access to all digital channels to make their payments.”   

A Venu Prasad, Principal Secretary, Power, Government of Punjab appealed all PSPCL consumers to pay their electricity bills through BBPS channels and “enjoy the convenience of easy online electricity bill payments”.

“We are confident PSPCL consumers will find this service extremely convenient and useful,” he said.   

The Digital Collections Tag Line of PSPCL is :

All payments exceeding Rs. 3 Lac in a billing cycle/month shall only be accepted through e-banking, credit/debit card, RTGS/NEFT or any other approved digital mode as per the CC no. 39/2018

The various ways through which PSPCL consumers can pay their Electricity Bill is highlighted here.

The Joy of Safe ePayments at Andhra Pradesh’s AnnA CanteeN’s

          In the next couple of months Anna Canteen across Andhra Pradesh will dish out 2,15,000 meals per day.

In all, 100 canteens in 35 towns were opened in the first phase, while another 103 units in 75 towns would be inaugurated in the next.

Each canteen is expected to serve at least 350 plates of food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The capacity could be extended up to 500 plates when needed.

Every canteen sports decent interiors and a uniform elevation and design. They are also equipped with the technology required for electronic surveillance, issuing tokens and feedback system.

The project is taken up by the Akshaya Patra Foundation, which provides the meals, in collaboration with the Municipal Administration and Civil Supplies Departments.

          It would be a boost to Safe ePayments if citizens are encouraged to buy the tokens through the digital channel instead of the old-fashioned cash mode.

          This would reduce the need to haggle for change and also reduce the stress levels of the cashiers in the respective Anna Canteens.

          Real time monitoring of the sales can also be monitored with minimal investment

          In the last week of November 2016, Shri Chandrababu Naidu’s Government  launched  ‘AP Purse’ to push cashless transactions. AP Purse is an Android app that compiles various mobile payment apps and tools.

          However, the AP Purse is not visible on Google Playstore now.

          Citizens will be happy to buy the tokens through a Pre-loaded Contactless Card.

          This will also reduce fraudulent transactions and is a better option than costly face recognition machines.

          A dedicated website with a live plate counter of all the Anna Canteens will boost transparency

Suggested Reading:

103 more Anna Canteens will be opened in next phase

Two days on, Andhra's Anna canteens an instant hit among poor, middle class

Food for all: All you need to know about Anna Canteens launched in Andhra Pradesh

Get Ready for Promoting Digital Payments in 100 Smart Cities in 100 days

Get Ready for Promoting Digital Payments in 100 Smart Cities in 100 days

@ https://smartnet.niua.org/sites/default/files/digital_payments_for_smart_cities-_guidelines_vf.pdf

Should IDFC Bank advice ePayLater to integrate BBPS into it’s platform?

          In August 2017, ePayLater announced a tie-up with IRCTC to boost its lending portfolio. Thought the tie-up IRCTC registered users could create a profile on ePayLater and use the ePayLater credit line to book tickets via IRCTC.

          The main advantage of the ePayLater facility was the time saved in bypassing the payment gateway, thereby enhancing the payment success rate.

          The 3.50% service charge was a drawback however the users need not pay the payment gateway service charges.

          Based on the repayment cycle of IRCTC users of ePayLater credit line, the   users credit line would be increased or decreased. An enhanced credit line, would be beneficial for ePayLater users to transact on other partner platforms.

          Now, IDFC and ePayLater have announced a partnership to harness the benefits of UPI to ramp up volumes.

          Through the UPI channel, ePayLater looks forward to offer its services to the whole bank accountholders irrespective of whether the merchant is on ePayLater platform or not.

          In simple words, through UPI channel, the individual merchants need not be part of the ePayLater platform to offer ePayLater facilities to its buyers.

          It is sufficient if the merchant has a UPI handle to accept through UPI channel. Nothing more, nothing less.

          This innovative offering opens a new path for IDFC and ePayLater to acquire new customers

          As of now, this is the message displayed on ePayLater website

          So, we have to wait for the actual process flow.

          Benefits of ePayLater integrating BBPS on its platform

          Benefit 01) The bills are directly fetched from the BBPS channel into the ePayLater platform.

Benefit 02) ePayLater users can settle the Bill Amount on the due date and avail the 14 days free credit line.

Benefit 03) It offers ePayLater users to transact more often and enhance their credit line.

Of course, BBPS Service Charges would have to be borne by ePayLater only.