Fuel dealers say the 0.4% MDR will squeeze their margin, which is fixed
Pune: Fuel dealers in the state will decide on Sept 27 whether or not to accept UPI payments at pumps following Centre’s proposal to levy a 0.4% merchant charge on each payment exceeding Rs 2,000. FAMPEDA president Amit Gupta said there would be a meeting of national fuel dealers’ associations on Sept 27. MDR on UPI transactions above Rs 2,000 will be a major problem as we receive a prescribed dealer margin on a fixed per-litre basis and have no authority to revise the selling price or dealer margin to recover additional payment processing costs,” Gupta said. “A substantial proportion of fuel purchases exceed Rs 2,000.
Now, that is not the case due to several issues, including criminal incidents.
Dhruv Ruparel, president of Petrol Dealers Association Pune and a vice-president of FAMPEDA, said any MDR, flat transaction fee or other digital payment charge would directly affect dealers. It would materially affect dealers’ financial viability,” he said. Baba Shinde, president of Maharashtra State Vahan Chalak Malak Pratinidhi Mahasangh, said the move could also create security concerns for truck drivers. If petrol pumps decline UPI payments to truck drivers, things will become very inconvenient and risky, leading to many complications,” he said.
Federation of All Maharashtra Petrol Dealers Association (FAMPEDA) has opposed the move in a letter to the finance ministry. “Whatever they decide will apply to us.
“Earlier, transporters used to provide cash to drivers after calculating the route.