Commuters protest against DMRC's decision to not refund smart-card amount
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Commuters protest against DMRC's decision to not refund smart-card amount

DMRC’s move came in reference to comply with the guidelines issued by RBI.

Commuters protest against DMRC's decision to not refund smart-card amount

Commuters are protesting against a recent announcement made by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), through which it appealed to customers to surrender all old and new Metro smart cards before April 1, failing which, the amount in the cards will not be refunded to them.  

DMRC’s move came in reference to comply with guidelines issued by RBI.

Objecting the decision, the Confederation of NCR RWAs (CONRWA) wrote to Mangu Singh, managing director of DMRC, and demanded that it be rolled back.

In the letter, CONRWA said there was no such guideline that says the amount will not be returned to customers in cases they fail to surrender the issued smart cards with DMRC.

PS Jain, president of CONRWA, said he was not aware of any guideline or notification by RBI that authorised a private bank or company to not  refund the amount deposited in a customer’s smart card. He added that DMRC charged interest on the amount deposited in smart cards. "The decision to not refund the remaining cash balance on the cards is not a fair decision," said Jain.

He explained using an analogy of a customer closing his bank account, in which case the bank returns all the deposited money to the customer before the account is closed.

“Similarly, the cash balance in the smart cards is digital money,” said Jain. “DMRC should not be stop ping customers from withdrawing the amount even if the smart cards become non-refundable. Customers have every right to withdraw the amount whenever they want.”

He said, “If a customer recharges his or her smart card, one should have the right to use the cards or withdraw the amount. If DMRC does not scrap the decision, it is going to be a setback for fast growing electronic mode of payment.”