Madhya Pradesh Traders Observe ‘No UPI Day’: Shopkeepers In Bhopal, Indore Reject Payments Above ₹2,000 Over MDR Charge | VIDEO

Madhya Pradesh traders staged a "No UPI Day" protest on Wednesday, refusing to accept UPI payments exceeding ₹2,000 in response to a proposed 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) charge on digital transactions. Merchants in Bhopal, Indore, and other cities covered their UPI QR scanners with black cloth and participated in symbolic demonstrations against the proposed charge.

The Akhil Bharatiya Udyog Vyapar Mandal Madhya Pradesh organized the protest, which was voluntary and non-coercive. Anupam Agrawal, the Madhya Pradesh Vyapar Mandal state general secretary, warned that the proposed UPI MDR charge could significantly burden traders, with a potential maximum charge of ₹300 per transaction. He cited the example of oil traders who deal in transactions above ₹2,000 daily, emphasizing that the cost of the MDR could become a major expense.

In Indore, over 100 trader organizations joined the protest, covering QR scanners to oppose the proposed MDR charge on UPI transactions above ₹2,000. Ahilya Chamber of Commerce president Ramesh Khandelwal highlighted that the move would increase financial burdens on low-margin traders and adversely affect ease of doing business.

The protest was not against UPI itself but against additional merchant charges that could increase operational costs for retailers. Earlier, around 150 traders had protested at Regal Square, raising slogans against UPI charges. In Bhopal, petrol pumps covered their UPI scanners and refused to accept payments above ₹2,000 as part of the state-wide protest.

The Madhya Pradesh Petrol Pump Dealers Association announced that petrol pumps across the state would not accept UPI payments above ₹2,000 from October 16, representing approximately 4,700 petrol pumps in the state. The proposed rule, effective from October 15, would impose a 0.4% MDR on person-to-merchant UPI transactions exceeding ₹2,000, with a cap of ₹300 on transactions amounting to ₹75,000 and above.

Trader organizations expressed support for digital payments but urged the government to reconsider the proposed MDR framework, arguing that it could increase costs for businesses and consumers.