UPI LPG: large number of LPG cylinders are used in the country, so if you also use an LPG cylinder at home, this information is extremely important for you. Nowadays, most people use digital payments, and cash usage is less common than before. If you pay with UPI when receiving cylinder delivery, you may need to pay in cash instead of UPI in the future.
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)’s imposition of a charge on certain merchant transactions exceeding Rs 2,000 could also impact LPG cylinders. According to a report in The Hindu, cooking gas distributors are assessing the impact this charge will have on LPG cylinder sales. It is proposed to implement a flat merchant discount rate (MDR) of Rs 5 on certain transactions exceeding Rs 2,000 from October 15th.
Fixed to be installed on commercial cylinder
According to the report, since the price of a 19-kg cylinder for commercial use exceeds rs 2,500, it is likely that a merchant discount rate (MDR) of Rs 5 will be imposed on them. It should be noted that on September 1st, the price of commercial LPG for a 19-kg cylinder was increased from Rs 2,738 to Rs 2,747.50. This is an increase of Rs 9.50.
Confusion over domestic LPG
Most of the questions are regarding domestic LPG cylinders. Actually, the price of a 14.2 kg domestic cylinder is less than Rs 1,000. In such a situation, distributors are confused whether this charge will be applicable on direct customer payment or not. According to the report, the biggest concern of distributors is regarding UPI payments made during delivery.
In many LPG agencies, delivery staff take payment for cylinders from customers on their personal UPI accounts and transfer the amount collected throughout the day together to the agency’s account in the evening. In such a situation, the amount which will be transferred together by the delivery staff in the evening is likely to come under the scope of the new MDR.
Distributors say that individual QR codes are not provided to each delivery employee. Therefore, accepting payments through personal UPI accounts has become common in many places. This leaves the option of accepting cash, or customers may be asked to pay an additional amount. However, distributors are preparing to raise this issue with the government and demand exemption from MDR for LPG distribution.
NPCI has implemented a flat MDR of Rs 5 for transactions exceeding Rs 2,000 for certain merchant categories, including railways, telecom, insurance, and fuel. The objective of this flat fee, rather than the usual variable rate of 0.4% for certain categories, is to control costs in low-margin sectors.