On Wednesday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that India’s digital cash transfer scheme and several other social welfare programs are a ‘logistical marvel’.
While addressing a Fiscal Monitor press conference, Paolo Mauro, Deputy Director of the Fiscal Affairs of India, asserted that there is a lot to learn from India. “From India, there is a lot to learn. If I look at the case of India, it is quite impressive,” he said.
Mauro underlined the sheer size of the country, saying it is a “logistical marvel” that several programs aimed at assisting low-income people reach hundreds of millions of people.
“There are programs that specifically target women. There are programs that target the farmers, and elderly,” he added.
The top IMF official also highlighted the success of various technological innovations in India, particularly, Aadhaar, India’s very own unique identification system.
Vitor Gaspar, IMF’s Director of Fiscal Affairs Department, underlining that the IMF is collaborating with India on the application of new technologies said, “we are collaborating with India that in that context as one of the most inspiring examples of the application of technology to solve complex issues of providing support to the people who need it the most.”
Notably, more than Rs 6.3 lakh crore were transferred to the beneficiaries under the Direct Benefit Transfer scheme in the fiscal year 2021-22, as per the information provided by the Ministry of Electronics.
During the previous fiscal year, an average of 90 lakh (9 million) Direct Benefit Transfer payments were processed daily.
According to government data, approximately 20,000 crores was recently transferred into the bank accounts of more than 10 crore beneficiaries under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana. Every year, eligible farmers receive 6,000 in three equal installments of 2,000 under the PM-KISAN scheme. Since the scheme’s launch in 2019, 11 installments have been distributed, with over 2 lakh crore transferred to approximately 11.37 crore eligible farmers, as per the information provided by Centre.
In terms of digital payments, more than 8,840 crore digital payment transactions were processed in 2021-22, and nearly 3,300 crores in 2022-23. (up to July 24, 2022). A day saw an average of 28.4 crore digital transactions. Since 2013, more than 24.8 lakh crore (24.80 trillion) has been transferred through the DBT mode.