INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PROFESSIONAL STUDIES

Despite ongoing challenges such as gaps in digital literacy, poor connectivity, and trust issues that require focused policy and education initiatives like PMGDISHA to bridge, digital payments are revolutionizing financial inclusion in rural India. This is being accomplished by leveraging platforms such as the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), Aadhaar (AePS), and mobile technology to bring banking to the unbanked. This makes it easier to gain access to credit, savings, and government assistance. This has a significant impact on economic participation, particularly among women. In rural India, where traditional banking infrastructure is scarce and frequently unavailable, digital payment systems have become an essential component for improving financial inclusion. New opportunities have arisen to democratize access to financial services across socio-economic strata, thanks to platforms like the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), Paytm, and Aadhaar-enabled Payment Systems (AePS). This study delves into the complex ways in which digital payment ecosystems propel financial inclusion in rural areas of India. As a result of Aadhaar, digital identification, biometric verification, and mobile technology, more rural households are able to use the formal banking system. The research is based on secondary data collected from several sources, including reports from UIDAI and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), as well as academic works on digital transformation and financial inclusion. This research examines the trends in transactions, the penetration of platforms, the socioeconomic impact, and the hurdles that users have while trying to use digital financial tools. It does this by combining qualitative and quantitative approaches. It takes a close look at how well these platforms work in facilitating government assistance programs, savings accounts, loans, and remittances, especially through Direct Benefit Transfers (DBT).

Keywords: digital literacy; rural India; DBT