Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged citizens to move towards a cashless society and highlighted the role of the youth in this change.
“Our dream is to move to a cashless society. This may not be achieved immediately. But once we start the move towards a less-cash society, the goal to become a cashless society will not be far away,” he said in his monthly radio programme Mann Ki Baat .
His comments come soon after his address to the nation on November 8 when he had announced the decision to demonetise ₹500 and ₹ 1,000 currency notes.
Though the Prime Minister had spoken on the issue during his announcement, he said that he had received a number of suggestions to talk about the decision at length in the radio programme.
“This is an opportunity to improve the economic situation of the country... youngsters can be an agent of change,” the Prime Minister said, adding that every youth should teach how to use mobile technology and online payment methods to at least 10 families.
He also praised the efforts of various sections of society such as farmers and tea workers who have had to make adjustments after demonetisation of the high value currency notes.
The Prime Minister also urged small traders to work towards a cashless society and encouraged digital payments by customers by downloading apps and installing point of sale machines in their shops.
Concerned about the plight of workers, who often do not get the minimum wages, which are siphoned off, he said they can now open bank accounts and use mobile apps to carry out monetary transactions. This will prevent their exploitation, he said.
The Prime Minister also warned those with unaccounted wealth to not misuse the accounts of the poor to deposit their money.
“A very stringent law to deal with benami transactions is being implemented, that will make such transactions very difficult,” he warned, adding that it is up to people whether they want to correct their behaviour and follow the law.
However, they should not lure the poor to help save their black money.