CHENNAI: The one-day boycott of UPI payments called by the Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangangalin Peramaippu on Monday received a mixed response in Chennai, with many shops continuing to accept digital payments despite the traders’ appeal to use cash.
The traders’ body had called for the boycott on October 12 to protest against the proposed 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate on person-to-merchant UPI transactions above Rs 2,000. It argued that the charge could increase the burden on traders.
However, the appeal received little support from customers in several parts of South Chennai, traders said.
TN Ashokan, honorary adviser to the Chrompet town branch of the association, told TNIE that customers preferred UPI payments because they were convenient. “Nearly 90% of our customers prefer UPI transactions to cash payments,” he said.
A shop owner in Tambaram said customers argued that their purchases were worth only a few hundred rupees and that the proposed charge applied only to transactions above Rs 2,000.
“They insisted that we accept UPI payments, and we had to agree,” the shopkeeper said. In many parts of South Chennai, shops had not displayed the association’s posters of the boycott, leaving customers unaware of the protest.
However, association functionaries claimed the boycott received a good response in Koyambedu, Kodambakkam, KK Nagar, Virugambakkam, Villivakkam and Perambur. They also reported a good response in Pudukkottai and Namakkal.
