E-RUPI - a step towards cashless society

E-RUPI is a cashless rupee with the following salient features:

• E-RUPI is created by GOI (Government of India) and given to poor people.
• The receiver will have to have a mobile phone. The mobile phone may be a smartphone or a feature phone.
• E-RUPI on the mobile phone will be a QR or SMS code.
• The receiver doesn't need to have any bank account or Paytm-like account.
• E-RUPI will have an expiry date. After the expiry date, it is useless.
• E-RUPI can only be spent on necessities, i.e., buying food, medicines, and other items marked as essential by GOI.
• The person/organization accepting E-RUPI for essential goods/services will get equivalent currency credited in their bank account.
• Large organizations, who currently issue Sodexo coupons to their employees, will at some point of time transition to E-RUPI.

E-RUPI can easily be misused, e.g., A poor person, after receiving E-RUPI of ₹500, can purchase alcohol of ₹400 with it. The shopkeeper can now buy ₹500 essential goods/services with ₹500 E-RUPI.

Many rich people in India use digital currency, e.g., credit/debit cards, UPI, Paytm, etc. The poor in India almost always use cash. The GOI is hoping that the poor will start using E-RUPI. GOI wants a cashless society.
The goal of E-RUPI is not to prevent fraud; the goal is a cashless society.

Who needs eRUPI?
In the USA, the poor get food coupons. In India, there are multiple subsidies for the poor, e.g., PDS, Kerosene, MGNREGS, etc. The long-term plan is to replace all the subsidies with an eRUPI handout and thus reduce fraud are overheads.