A conceptual framework for multipurpose bill payment system-appraising member customers’ need

Paying bill is no more a nightmare for the people in recent days with the advent of technology. E-payment system has introduced multiple facilities of paying bills to the members. Now the members can pay their bills online by using the internet, if the facility available. They can also pay the same through net banking services. But according to a recent survey, only 6% Indians use Internet and out of these internet users only 42% people have the knowledge to make payment through electronic system. Hence it can be easily concluded that in our country majority of the members are out of this comfort zone to utilize these facilities due to different limitations. So there is a need for a system which can serve a member to pay multiple bills sitting in their houses instead of surfing the internet or walking a distance to a physical location. The proposed system is a multipurpose bill payment system that behaves as a payment cart. The responsibility will be taken by an organization (preferably sister concern of an existing bank or RBI registered NBFC) which is supposed to have tie-ups with the sectors where payment has to be done. The people can avail the facilities only by registering themselves with this serving organization and with receipt of a membership card. The transaction process will be this membership card (smart card) based. Employee from the organization will visit the member periodically along with their portable handhold machine. The members can pay multiple bills (e.g. electric bill, telephone bill, taxes, LIC premiums, loan EMI etc.) by only swapping their membership card. Concerned payment may be done by cash or by any acceptable debit card. After the payment being done the member will be given a receipt as an authentication by the service organization. This study describes the whole concept through a flow diagram and in the concluding section narrated the challenges that the system may face in introduction. Proper planning of this concept according to this flow diagram may be a good entrepreneurial proposition to serve the countrymen in large.