Which of the following is a most likely consequence of implementing the ‘Unified Payments Interface (UPI)’?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) Mobile wallets will not be necessary for online payments.
UPI moves money straight from one bank account to another through a single mobile app, so users need not first load money into a mobile wallet. That makes 'wallets will not be necessary' the most likely consequence; the other three options are sweeping claims that UPI does not directly cause.
- ✓ (a) UPI links bank accounts to a phone app and transfers money instantly, round the clock. NCERT notes that such mediums directly transfer money from one person's bank account into another, so a separate wallet is not needed.
- ✗ (b) UPI is a way of moving money between bank accounts, not a new currency. Nothing about it points to physical currency being totally replaced within two decades.
- ✗ (c) FDI depends on investment policy, markets and regulation. A domestic payment system does not make foreign investment rise drastically.
- ✗ (d) Subsidy transfers depend on a beneficiary's bank account being identified and linked to the scheme. UPI is a payment channel and does not by itself make them very effective.
Remember · UPI (NPCI, launched 2016) connects bank accounts to one mobile app for instant 24x7 transfers, so a mobile wallet becomes unnecessary.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 7 Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 1), Ch 11 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 7 · Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 1), Chapter 11 “UPI (Unified Payments Interface), etc., are also used for transactions. These mediums directly transfer money from one person's bank account into another.”
- Unified Payments Interface (UPI) product overview, NPCI (Internet Archive copy) ↗ “Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is a system that powers multiple bank accounts into a single mobile application (of any participating bank), merging several banking features, seamless fund routing & merchant payments into one hood.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2017, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·