Union Minister makes a strong pitch for plastic currency

 The Dollar Business Bureau   The Union Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley on Friday, said that there is a need to incentivize the usage of plastic money in order to curb unaccounted currency flow and promote the use of accounted currency. He made a strong pitch for use of credit cards, Rupay cards and cheques or any other negotiable instrument against hard currency. Speaking at an event organised by the Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL), the Minister further said, “As a result of financial inclusion, more and more households are now connected to banks and Rupay cards have also been issued to the people, who also include those under below poverty line." In this regard, the Minister stressed on the need for launching a national awareness campaign to promote the usage of Rupay cards in a much bigger way, with a hope that it could become a game changer in case of Indian economy. In his address at the Corporation’s 9^th Foundation Day function, the Minister also appreciated the progress made by the SPMCIL in production of Bank Notes & Coins.  The Minister also lauded the Corporation’s efforts in modernization of mints and commissioning of Bank Note Paper Line at Bank Note Press. Meanwhile, M S Rana, CMD of SPMCIL, highlighted the Company’s efforts towards indigenization and modernization, while informing about the status of the ongoing projects being taken up by the Corporation. Achieving a turnover rise up to Rs 3797.61 crore, which is more than 150% since its inception,  the Company has not only repaid the loan of Rs 1110 crores, but has also invested Rs 1500 crores from its internal resources, he added.  

This article was published on March 28, 2015.