Afternoon
Voice: Opinion: Saturday, August 31, 2019.
Revise
RTI fees and other government-fees
It
was only after revelation through RTI application that Department of Posts
discontinued postal-orders in outdated denominations like Rs 1, 2, 5 and 7
because of extremely low sale-figure and high handling cost. According to an
RTI response, handling cost of a postal-order was Rs 37.45 to Department of
Posts alone in the year 2011-12. Handling cost for clearing-operation of banks
is even extra. It is highly illogical that public-exchequer may bear such
extra-ordinary loss in handling postal-orders in denominations like Rs 10 and
20. Rather it is time that higher denominations like of Rs 100, 200 and 500 may
be added to avoid purchase of demand-drafts in submitting various types of
fees.
Government-fees
below Rs 50 may either be increased or totally abolished. Or Department of
Posts may issue special stamps like there used to be for licences of radio and
TV sets for services requiring heavy use of postal-orders in lower
denominations of Rs 10 and 20. Beginning can be done with introducing RTI
stamps where presently heavy use of postal-orders in denominations rupees 10 is
there. RTI stamps can be issued in denominations of Rs 2, 10 and 50. Presently
copying-charges under RTI Act in amounts lower than rupees 10 is not feasible
because of discontinuance of postal-orders in denominations of Rs 2. Even
Central Information Commission CIC in its repeated verdicts has recommended
issue of RTI stamps. CIC has also taken up the issue of RTI stamps with
Department of Post administratively.
Free
transaction through credit and debit cards.
It
refers to RBI report released on 29.08.2019 revealing that there has been a
shocking 18-percent rise in currency-circulation from that at time of
demonetisation of cold currency-notes of rupees 500 and 1000 on 08.11.2016.
Thus, it kills the very purpose of demonetisation. This is because stress was
given on small digital payments where there are regular cases of frauds
affecting ordinary lower and middle income people. Currency-circulation can
only be curbed by targeting bigger transactions. Rather than spending so much
like Rs 4811 crore on currency-printing in the year 2017-18, study should be
made if government and banks can bear complete transaction-charges on use of
credit and debit cards. Presently traders having low profit-margins charge
two-percent extra from consumers on payments made through credit and debit
cards. Amount so spent on bearing transaction-charges partly by government can
be further compensated by withdrawing needless cash-incentive of .75 per cent
on purchase of petrol and diesel through card-payment. Banks can be directed to
reduce transaction-charges on card-payment considerably in case government is
ready to bear balance nominal transaction-charges.
Cash-withdrawal
limit from banks by an individual should be restored to that at time of
demonetisation i.e. Rs 96000 per month by an individual per month, which may
gradually be further reduced to Rs 48000 per month. However, for tackling
economy-slowdown, on-line sale should be banned or restricted so that
retail-wholesale trade contributing maximum 28 per cent to Indian economy may
flourish with transaction-less card-payments thus preventing generation of
unemployment.
Currency-circulation
can further be curbed by asking all Rs 2000 notes to be deposited in banks
without being further issued. Step will not affect common people because Rs
2000 notes are mainly used for unaccounted big transactions. Government can
generate huge revenue by simultaneously introducing permanent Voluntary
Disclosure Scheme whereby 50-percent of unaccounted money can be invested in long-term
Infrastructural Bonds with nominal interest to generate new projects creating
huge employment in public-sector rather than imposing surcharges on higher
incomes paving towards evasion of Income Tax. :Subhash Chandra Agrawal
.JPG)
.JPG)
