Manipur’s tiny Karang becomes India’s ‘first cashless island

Imphal, Jan. 16: The picturesque tourist destination Karang, a tiny lake island in Manipur, is now India’s first ‘cashless island’ and will soon be reaping the benefits of being one.
The Union Ministry of Electronic and Information Technology announced Karang as the “first cashless Island in India,” under its Digital India programme, on January 13.
Confirming this, the deputy commissioner of Bishnupur district, M Harekrishna, spoke to this reporter on the phone. He informed that the island fulfils the centre’s criteria. Officials and village representatives witnessed the cashless transactions in the island by using digital methods of payments through their mobile phones.
Karang Island is located in the middle of Loktak, the largest freshwater lake in northeast India. It belongs to Thanga part-I Gram Panchayat in Bishnupur district. It can be reached within two hours from Imphal. It has 297 families with a population of 1859 (2011 census).
With the initiative of the Common Service Centre (CSC) with the District e-Governance Society (DeGS) for Bishnupur district, the cashless campaign under the digital finance inclusion awareness and access program was held from January 9 to 12.
Karang’s local representatives Pradhan H Tharongou, O Seitabatimamd S Athoiba and H Inakhunbi gave an assurance from their side to extend help if needed. According to District Manager of CSC Bishnupur, Prasant Oinam, who initiated the program under the supervision of Bishnupur district DC Harekrishna, the people of Karang pledged to contribute to the government’s vision of creating a cashless Gram Panchayet for comfortable transactions as no banking service is available on the Island.
“Now most of Karang family members who are mobile phone Apps friendly, uses various types of digital payments such as e-wallet (SBI buddy), SBI-freedom, UBI-Unified Payment Interface and Aadhar enable payment system etc. So far 400 beneficiaries, 16 merchants including six motor boat service providers registered and we’re providing a card swipe machine within this month so that the island can achieve 100 percent cashless society,” said Prasant.
Earlier Phailen, a small village under Saikul block in the then Senapati district attained the unique status as the first cashless village in Manipur on December 18 last year.
Akodara, another tiny village in Gujarat, had attained the unique status as India’s first digital village in 2015.