HYDERABAD: With the delay in digital onboarding of street vendors in 24 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) under the PM Street Vendors Atmanirbhar Nidhi (PMSVANidhi), the Telangana Mission for Elimination of Poverty in Municipal Areas (TMEPMA) of Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) Department expressed displeasure with the ULBs and asked them to organise camps till November 15 for the digital onboarding of vendors.
As per the directions of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), digital onboarding of the street vendors and training is an integral component of the PMSVANidhi. However, 24 ULBs including the civic bodies of Hyderabad, Warangal, Nizamabad, Khammam, Ramagundam, Karimnagar, Adilabad, Palvancha, Zaheerabad, Armoor, Sangareddy, Miryalguda, Medak, Narayanpet, Peerzadiguda, Mahabubnagar, Sircilla, Nalgonda, Kamareddy, Jagityal, Bodhan, Jagityal, Mancherial and Korutla are lagging in the digital onboarding of the street vendors.
Last month, the TMEPMA issued instructions to organise digital onboarding camps, Pattana Pragathi-Main Bhi Digital, followed by visits to markets to onboard the remaining vendors, but not much was achieved. Many of the street vendors don’t use smartphones and they are being provided with a system that enables accepting of digital payments in their accounts even with a lower-end phone.
Special drive to boost financial inclusion
In the special drive till November 15, vendors will be told about the UPI QR code and be helped on accepting or making digital payments. The ULBs will have to mobilise 250 SVs per day in two shifts and help them into accepting and making digital payment transactions.The role of digital payment aggregators (DPA) include on-the-spot generation of durable QR code (one standee and one sticker) and handing them over to the street vendor in the camp only.
Linking of the UPI to the vendor’s saving bank account, providing training for credit and debit transactions. To demonstrate penny drop transactions of `1 from and into their bank accounts, support and follow-up with SVs for at least 30 days after onboarding to bring in behavioural change in SVs will also be extended.
DPAs will educate the vendors about the benefits of digital payments. Digital footprints including digital transactions and loan repayment data under the scheme would help in the credit profiling of vendors.
This will enable the inclusion of vendors in the formal credit ecosystem, and help in driving up the financial inclusion of the unorganised sector.
Help of payment aggregators sought
The role of digital payment aggregators include on-the-spot generation of durable QR code and handing them over to the street vendor