About PIDF Scheme

• Operationalised in 2021, the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme aims at incentivising the deployment of payment acceptance infrastructure such as physical Point of Sale (PoS), Quick Response (QR) codes in tier-3 to tier-6 centres, north-eastern states and Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
• This scheme is a part of the Government of India’s efforts to promote digital payments and reduce cash transactions. 
• It aims to provide financial assistance to eligible entities for setting up, extending and modernizing payment infrastructure across the country. 
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is responsible for operationalizing the scheme.

Why in News?

• • The Reserve Bank of India has decided to include PM Vishwakarma under the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme as well as extend the tenure of the scheme by another two years.

• PM Vishwakarma scheme was recently launched by the centre to provide end-to-end support to artisans and craftspeople.

• Refer Pulse September 2023 Digest edition for more details about Vishwakarma scheme.

• As per the original plan, the tenure of the PIDF scheme was fixed for three years till December 2023.
• It is now proposed to extend the PIDF Scheme by a further period of two years, that is up to December 31, 2025.
• This decision to expand the targeted beneficiaries under the PIDF scheme will provide a fillip to the Reserve Bank’s efforts towards promoting digital transactions at the grassroots level.