Consumer News Archives -

Soon You Will Complete KYC Procedure Through Digilocker

Sat, 04 Mar 2023 05:27:14 +0000

The Buyt Desk

In a big push toward digitization- Aadhaar and Digilocker will be used as a one-stop solution to complete KYC (Know Your Customer) procedure. This attempt is believed to assist people in easily sharing and updating the important information maintained by several bodies like regulated entities, regulators, and government agencies. Digilocker will serve as the go-to platform for updating identity and addresses. Aadhaar will be the foundational identity.

What is Digilocker?

It is an initiative from the MeitY – Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, under India’s Digital Programme. It is basically a digital document wallet that is designed to support mark sheets, and government identity documents, among others. This is a widely used platform for documents and certificates digital verification. It has reduced the need to carry several physical documents. It has helped in launching a shift towards paperless governance.

This digital document is categorized into State Government, Central Government, Health, Transport, Banking & Insurance, Ministry of Defence, and many more.

PAN Number (Permanent Account Number) will be used as a basic identification for all the digital systems of certain government agencies, under the National Data Governance Policy.It will help in giving access to anonymized data.

Use of Digilocker

To use Digilocker, you must have a scanned copy of the document or certificate like a DL (Driving License), PAN card, or an Aadhaar Card. Then, you will have to upload it to the Digilocker app with the e-signature of the users. E-signature is just like self-attesting documents. E-sign is one of the simplest methods of digitally signing electronic documents.

To digitally sign documents through Digilocker, follow the below e-signing method.

Login to your Digilocker account
Access the ‘Uploaded Documents’ icon
You will see a list of uploaded documents
Tap on the eSign link available at the front of the document required to sign digitally
Now, you will receive an OTP on your specific mobile number
Enter that OTP in the text box and click on the eSign button
Selected documents shall be eSigned i.e. signed digitally
You can eSign a specific document at one time. When you digitally signed the chosen document, it will convert into PDF if it is not in PDF format.

The post Soon You Will Complete KYC Procedure Through Digilocker appeared first on .

Government Is All Set to Curb the Cheque Bounce Menace

Mon, 31 Oct 2022 18:15:59 +0000

The Buyt Desk

The Finance Ministry is thinking over the steps to reduce cheque bounce cases in India. They are receiving many suggestions from trade bodies and other related offices. Suggestions include changes in auto debit Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) modifying the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.

What is a cheque bounce case?

An account holder issues a cheque towards some payment. The cheque is presented to the bank for payment and it is not cleared but returned unpaid by the bank because of insufficient funds in the account. When a cheque is returned without payment, the cheque is said to have bounced. And this is an offense as per the Indian legal system and is a jailable offense.

Current cheque bounce scenario

In India, cheque bounce cases are clogging the legal system. The finance ministry is thinking about various steps to deal with cheque issues. The ministry held a meeting with high-level officials and a panel to discuss – how to deal with the high incidence of cheque bounce cases, and many suggestions were made. Below are a few suggestions made at the meeting –

Dipping into other accounts of a cheque issuer
Prohibiting opening of new accounts of offenders
Debiting other accounts of the cheque issuer if his or her account is short of funds to honor the cheque
Treating cheque bounce as a default of the loan and reporting the same to credit information companies for necessary downgrade of score

A proper legal view of these suggestions is yet to take place. Only after it is legally approved, these suggestions will be accepted and new rules will be made. If these suggestions become rules, the payer will impose cheque honoring without the matter going to court. These will compel the cheque issuer to make payment by creating a restriction through technology.

How will it help if these suggestions are implemented?

If these suggestions are implemented, it will help promote ease of doing business and discourage people who have insufficient funds in their accounts from willfully indulging in the issuance of cheques. If these suggestions become the rule then implementation would be challenging as the integration of data across the banks is needed to get all financial information about an individual. Also, Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for auto-debit and other permissions would be required for implementing these suggestions.

What are the likely actions to be taken by the finance ministry?

Based on the suggestions at the meeting below are a few actions the finance ministry would take to curb cheque bounce cases –

Dipping into other accounts of the cheque issuer
Barring the opening of new accounts for offenders
Debiting other accounts of the cheque issuer if the account is short of funds
Treating cheque bounce as the default of a loan and reporting it to credit information firms

What are current laws against cheque bounce cases?

In the Indian law system, Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 tackles cheque bounce which is the dishonor of a cheque due to insufficient funds in the account. Under Section 138 of the Act, a complaint for the dishonor of a cheque can be filed in the court where the bank of the payee is located. Cheque bounce is a punishable offense and can be fined up to twice the amount of the cheque while imprisonment may be for less than two years. In a few cases, both fines and imprisonment may be imposed as punishment.

Many pending cases of cheque bounce

The system is upset about a large number of pending cases of cheque bounce. To deal with 35 lakh pending cases in India, the Supreme Court had formed a committee with a mandate to suggest steps to be taken for early disposal of these cases. This committee had recommended procedural reforms and augmentation of infrastructure along with full use of technology to ensure that disputes are resolved swiftly. Even a few changes in the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 were suggested.

During the hearing, to deal with such cases, the Center had “in principle accepted” the need for creating additional courts. Also, trade bodies have pitched in for the fast disposal of such cases and changes in the cheque bounce law.

Also, industry body PHDCCI has urged the ministry to take action like enforced suspension of bank withdrawals for a few days after cheque bounce to make the cheque issuers accountable for their action. Also, they are suggesting the government enact a law that from the date of the cheque bounce, through mediation the dispute between the two parties must be settled within 90 days.

The post Government Is All Set to Curb the Cheque Bounce Menace appeared first on .

5 Things To Check Before You Decide To Buy an Electric Vehicle

Wed, 22 Dec 2021 10:42:10 +0000

The Buyt Desk

Electric Vehicles are the future. Environment-conscious people are either buying electric vehicles or are seriously considering the idea of driving electric cars or scooters. The hike in fuel prices is also one of the reasons why people want to make this shift. Electrical vehicles (EV) cause no pollution and have a greener impact on our planet. They are the best option for eco-friendly transportation. In the Indian market, at present, there are only a few electric cars but there is a huge market for electrical scooters. People are becoming more environmentally friendly and are opting for EVs over traditional petrol/diesel vehicles. But buying new EV can be complicated as they are new in the market. There are many factors to be considered before buying an EV.

The new trend of Electric Vehicle

The shift from a traditionally powered auto to a full electric or crossover vehicle can be done smoothly when you know all aspects of EV. EV may not give the power and thrill like traditional fuel engine vehicles but driving a battery-powered vehicle has many rewards. The biggest advantage of driving an EV is low operating and maintenance costs compared to a petrol-diesel vehicle.

Five factors to be considered before buying an Electric Vehicle

1. Practical Usability and Driving Range – Decide for what purpose you are buying a new vehicle and what is your driving range. If you are looking to drive across cities or looking for powerful vehicles, then the ideal choice is not EV. An EV can run till its battery lasts. EV will burn more kilowatts of energy at highway speeds than you will around town. Refilling the fuel tank is easy as there are many fuel stations on the highway but it is difficult to find an EV charging station. New electric cars can run up to 300 km once fully charged compared to older generations of EVs.Look for an EV model which once fully charged can run distance as your daily commute. It is better to overestimate your daily needs with respect to distance travelled while calculating the range for a new EV. One full charge should suffice a day.

2. Price – Though the operating and maintenance costs of EVs is low, its purchase price is high compared to gas-fueled models. The costliest part of an EV is the vehicle’s battery as it has no engine there will not be oil component or wear and tear which is a major portion of maintenance cost. Manufacturers are trying to bring down the cost of batteries by replacing cobalt with nickel but it is a long way to go. Few more years are needed to bring in major improvement in costing.

3. Battery Life and warranty – Battery is the heart of an EV. Its longevity and its replacement cost are what decide the durability of EVs. As EVs do not have engines, they have very few moving parts. Apart from battery, it is tyres that may need replacement hence maintenance cost is negligible. Nowadays batteries have a longer life. Some are even good for running up to 10-15 years before replacement. Older batteries offer lesser mileage so it is an indication for replacement. Other than the purchase cost, battery replacement is the next major cost to be borne by EV owners.

4. Charging Infrastructure and options – EVs can be charged with the standard chargers. Some EVs are designed for specific chargers. The chargers are classified as level 1, level 2 and so on. Home chargers are different from the fast and DC fast chargers available at charging stations. Before buying, check the connector type, cabling requirements and charging time and see if it matches your criteria. There are fewer public charging stations in metro cities than in tier 2 cities. Charging at home is 3-4 times more time consuming because of lower power output. Charging at power stations is very quick. One can even install a higher output charging point (through the electric board) in the house garage if need quick charging.

5. Incentives And Tax Benefits – Under the Income Tax Act, section 80EEB, there is a tax benefit for EV. There are tax deductions on the interest payments up to Rs.1,50,000/- on EV auto loans. This offer is lucrative and to shift to EVs. The purpose of this initiative from the government of India is to increase sales of environment-friendly vehicles and decrease the sales of petrol/diesel engines.

There are many reasons to shift to EVs, be it for environmental reasons, our children’s respiratory issues or to save money on fuel. It is a good decision if you are going for EV. I hope this article has helped you with making better decisions and understanding EV.

The post 5 Things To Check Before You Decide To Buy an Electric Vehicle appeared first on .

ATM Charges Hiked by RBI

Thu, 17 Jun 2021 11:00:59 +0000

The Buyt Desk

The Reserve bank of India announced new Automated Teller Machine( ATM ) cash withdrawal charges. These charges will increase the transaction cost for all the users. The charge for ATM withdrawal beyond the free permissible limit has been increased. This charge was last revised in 2014. Similarly, the interchange fee per ATM transaction was last revised in 2012 and now it has been raised from Rs 15 to Rs 17.

Here are the new charges on ATM withdrawal-

ATM Withdrawal charge raised

The charge on ATM withdrawals beyond the permissible free limit will be Rs 21 instead of Rs 20. These charges will be applicable from 1st January 2022. The RBI circular said “To compensate the banks for the higher interchange fee and given the general escalation in costs, they are allowed to increase the customer charges to ₹21 per transaction. This increase shall be effective from January 1, 2022.”

Interchange Fee Raised

The interchange fee is paid by the card issuer bank to the ATM operator bank. If you have an ATM card of bank ‘A’ and you can’t find the ATM of the bank ‘A’. But there is an ATM of bank ‘B’ nearby then you can withdraw money from bank B’s ATM. But bank ‘A’ pays an interchange fee to bank ‘B’. It has been raised from Rs 15 to Rs 17 for financial transaction. This will be implemented from 1st August 2021.

Free ATM transaction limit

Customers will be eligible to get 5 free transactions per month from their bank ATMs. They will be eligible for 3 free transactions from other bank’s ATM if you reside in a metro city and 5 free withdrawal in a month if you reside in a non-metro city.

Fee Raised for Non Financial transactions too

The non-financial transaction in ATM’s like a request for a cheque book or changing the PIN of your ATM will also see a fee hike. The non-financial transaction will be and Rs 6 from Rs 5.

These charges have been raised by RBI so that banks can cover the cost of deployment and maintenance of ATMs.

The post ATM Charges Hiked by RBI appeared first on .

RBI’s Big Digital Push- Contactless Payment Limit Increased & RTGS will be 24x7x365

Sun, 06 Dec 2020 10:04:45 +0000

Priyanka Sambhav

RBI increased the limit for contactless transaction from Rs 2000 to Rs 5000. The revised limit will come into effect from 1st January 2021. The RBI governor Shaktikanta Das made this announcement during the presentation of credit policy. “In order to expand the adoption of digital payments in a safe and secure manner, it is proposed to enhance, at the discretion of the user, the limits for contactless card transactions and e-mandates for recurring transactions through cards (and UPI) from 2,000 to 5,000 from 1st January 2021,” said RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das.

What is a contactless transaction?

You swipe your debit/credit card, and if the amount of transaction is not more than Rs 2000(till now which will be Rs 5000 w.e.f 1st January 2021), you don’t need your PIN to complete the transaction. POS machine will read the card, and a customer will complete the payment without even having to touch the keypad. The contactless card transaction uses near field communications (NFC) technology to enable payment without swiping the card.

The enhanced contactless transaction limit will be applicable not only on the payments through debit and credit cards but also through prepaid instruments, wallets, and the Unified Payments Interface.

In these pandemic times, when social distancing is the ‘new normal’ – people want to make more and more contactless payments. The step to increase the limit will help in broader adoption of digital payment mode. Contactless payment is safer than handling cash and more safe when you are spared from punching your PIN too, so the no-touch transaction during COVID19 times is a good move.

Apart from raising the limit of the contactless transaction, RBI announced the extension of real-time gross settlement (RTGS)payment timings from 14th December 2020. Earlier RTGS was available only from 7 am to 6 pm during the working days and did not work on 2nd and 4th Saturdays. But now RTGS will be around the clock service and will function 24x7x365. RTGS enables large value transaction of Rs 2 lakh and above. As the name suggests, the fund transfer happens at the very same time.

RBI had made fund transfer system NEFT and IMPS into 24-hour service in December 2019, and now RTGS will be available on all the days too.

In a bid to push India towards a digital payment ecosystem, the apex banking body RBI has taken a slew of steps. The primary purpose is to make a consumer’s life easy, but at the same time, banks will have to work on a robust security system, so people feel that the faceless and contactless money transfers as safe as well.

The post RBI’s Big Digital Push- Contactless Payment Limit Increased & RTGS will be 24x7x365 appeared first on .

Credit Card लेने से पहले Check करें ये 6 Charges

Sun, 01 Nov 2020 14:43:52 +0000

The post Credit Card लेने से पहले Check करें ये 6 Charges appeared first on .

Aadhar – Not Mandatory for the Registration of Births and Deaths

Sun, 18 Oct 2020 15:17:31 +0000

Picture from- www.uidai.gov.in

By Arikta Shetty from Aureus Law Partners

The 12-digit Aadhaar number is not mandatory for registration of birth and death clarified Registrar General of India (RGI) in response to an RTI application. Andhra Pradesh based lawyer M.V. S. Anil Kumar Rajagiri had filed an RTI asking whether authorities/local bodies can ask for Aadhaar number for the birth/death registration process.

RGI gave the reference of an April 2019 circular which had said that there is no mandatory requirement of Aadhaar number for birth and death registration.

The registration of births and deaths in the country are done under the provisions of Registration of Births and Deaths (RBD) Act, 1969 and there is no provision in the RBD Act which permits the use of Aadhaar for establishing the identity of an individual for the purpose of registration of birth and death. There is no law framed for such use of Aadhaar and section 57 (Aadhaar authentication) will not be applicable, therefore, the requirement of Aadhaar for registration of births and deaths was held, not mandatory.

In 2018, Supreme Court had struck down the use of Aadhaar in many situations. The apex court’s judgement in Writ Petition of Justice KS Puttaswamy (Retd.) & Anr v. Union of India & Ors., in its judgement held “that the portion of Section 57 of the Aadhar Act 2016, which enables body corporate and individual to seek authentication, is ‘unconstitutional’.” The section allowed the use of the 12-digit Aadhaar number for establishing the identity of an individual for any purpose—whether by the State or any corporate or person. But the bench held that it is not mandatory for many processes.

The RGI in its reply clearly stated that the applicant ‘may’ provide the physical copy of Aadhar number or Enrolment ID number for establishing the identity of an individual for the purpose of registration of birth and death on ‘voluntary basis’ as one of the accepted documents though it is not a mandatory requirement. However, it should be ensured that the first eight digits of the Aadhar number are masked with black ink. In no case should the Aadhar number be stored in the database or printed on any document. Only the last four digits of the Aadhar Number may be printed or stored if needed.

So keep this in mind next time when you are asked for your Aadhar number that it is not mandatory for the registration of birth and death and it can’t be saved or printed by anyone.

Disclaimer: This is not a substitute for legal advice. Readers are encouraged to obtain appropriate legal advice before acting in pursuance of this article. Views are personal.

The post Aadhar – Not Mandatory for the Registration of Births and Deaths appeared first on .

Bumper Bonus- Govt wants to Uplift Demand in the Economy & Gold Sovereign Bond

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 04:33:14 +0000

The post Bumper Bonus- Govt wants to Uplift Demand in the Economy & Gold Sovereign Bond appeared first on .

Indian Consumer News and Updates

Mon, 12 Oct 2020 06:34:52 +0000

The post Indian Consumer News and Updates appeared first on .

Consumer News Archives -

Soon You Will Complete KYC Procedure Through Digilocker

What is Digilocker?

Use of Digilocker

Government Is All Set to Curb the Cheque Bounce Menace

What is a cheque bounce case?

Current cheque bounce scenario

How will it help if these suggestions are implemented?

What are the likely actions to be taken by the finance ministry?

What are current laws against cheque bounce cases?

Many pending cases of cheque bounce

5 Things To Check Before You Decide To Buy an Electric Vehicle

The new trend of Electric Vehicle

Five factors to be considered before buying an Electric Vehicle

ATM Charges Hiked by RBI

The Buyt Desk

Here are the new charges on ATM withdrawal-

ATM Withdrawal charge raised

Interchange Fee Raised

Free ATM transaction limit

Fee Raised for Non Financial transactions too

RBI’s Big Digital Push- Contactless Payment Limit Increased & RTGS will be 24x7x365

Credit Card लेने से पहले Check करें ये 6 Charges

Aadhar – Not Mandatory for the Registration of Births and Deaths

Bumper Bonus- Govt wants to Uplift Demand in the Economy & Gold Sovereign Bond

Indian Consumer News and Updates