Union Budget 2021: FM proposes ₹1,500 crore-scheme to promote digital payments

The government on Monday proposed ₹1,500 crore-scheme to promote digital payments in the country.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said there has been a manifold increase in digital payments in the recent past.

"To give a further boost to digital transactions, I earmark ₹1,500 crore for a proposed scheme that will provide financial incentive to promote digital mode of payment," the minister said while presenting the Budget for 2021-22.

Sitharaman said, in her Budget speech of 2019, a National Research Foundation (NRF) was announced.

"...We have now worked out the modalities and the NRF outlay will be ₹50,000 crore over five years. It will ensure the overall research ecosystem in the country is strengthened with focus on identified national priority thrust areas," she said.

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The Finance Minister also stated that a new initiative National Language Translation Mission will be undertaken. 

The government also wants to fund its large scale National Infrastructure Pipeline, Sitharaman said, adding that it would set aside ₹20,000 crore in order to begin funding for the Development Finance Institution (DFI) which is expected to cost over ₹111 lakh crore.

According to the finance minister, the ₹20,000 crore earmarked in the budget would allow the DFI to gain capital, while empowering it with a pending portfolio ₹5 lakh crore with the potential for expansion over the next three years. 

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The plan to set up the DFI to aid the funding for the National Infrastructure Pipeline, was announced by the Finance Minister in the Budget address of 2019-20. The NIP has around 7,000 projects across the country, at a massive expected cost of nearly ₹111 lakh crore between 2020 and 2025. 

- With inputs from HT Correspondent