Kerala’s jewellers’ associations have opposed the proposed introduction of additional charges on Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions and announced support for a statewide protest planned outside Central Government offices on October 13. The associations said the move could increase operating costs for small traders and place an additional financial burden on consumers.
The Kerala Jewellers Association Coordination Committee took the decision at a meeting in Kochi, according to Malayala Manorama. The committee backed the protest being organised across the state by the Kerala Gold and Silver Merchants Association, or KGSMA, and resolved to strengthen the demand for withdrawal of the proposed UPI charges.
The association said additional costs on UPI transactions would be a setback for merchants and customers at a time when digital payments are being encouraged. Its assessment focused particularly on the effect on small businesses, for which transaction-related expenses form part of daily operating costs.
The meeting was chaired by KGSMA state president K. Surendran. The participating representatives included Dr B. Govindan of AKGSMA, M.P. Ahmed, Rajesh Kalyan, A.K. Nishad of the Kerala Jewellers Federation, Shaju Chirayath of KGSDA, Suhas Rao, Krishnakumar Unni and Shino Mathew.
The proposed protest is expected to take place outside Central Government offices across Kerala on October 13. The jewellers’ association said it would express full solidarity with the demonstration and continue to raise the wider trade sector’s demand that UPI charges be withdrawn.
The dispute places payment costs at the centre of the relationship between digital transaction systems and small urban businesses. For retailers, UPI has become part of everyday customer payment activity, while the associations’ objection concerns whether any additional cost would be absorbed by merchants or passed on through higher transaction expenses. The supplied report does not specify the proposed rate, the authority responsible for introducing it or the implementation date.
The association’s position was recorded as a collective decision at the Kochi meeting rather than as an announcement of a new payment rule. The immediate next step identified by the committee is participation in the October 13 protest and the continuation of its demand for the withdrawal of additional UPI charges.
