The National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) is an innovative move forward in India’s quest for digitization. This indigenously-developed card is a step towards a more integrated and efficient payment system across different forms of transportation. Launched by the Prime Minister, the ‘One Nation One Card’ program promotes interoperability in transport charges.
The One Nation One Card Initiative
Under this initiative, cardholders can use the NCMC to pay for their bus fares, toll taxes, parking charges, retail shopping and even to withdraw cash. In 2018, the Delhi government had also introduced a common mobility card for travelling on Metro trains, Delhi Transport Corporation, and cluster buses. However, unlike the NCMC, these cards couldn’t be used for paying parking fees, toll booths in the Capital, or for retail purposes.
A First for India: The Payment Ecosystem
What sets the NCMC apart is that it’s India’s first indigenously developed payment ecosystem for transport. It operates based on three interconnected systems: the NCMC Card itself, SWEEKAR (Swachalit Kiraya: Automatic Fare Collection System), and SWAGAT (Swachalit Gate- a gate and card-reader system) which align with NCMC Standards. The trio works together allowing the national mobility card to be used seamlessly across the country without conflicting with existing point-of-sale (PoS) machines. Like other banking cards, both public and private banks can issue these cards.
Origins of the NCMC Program
The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) launched the NCMC to facilitate smooth travel on different metros and other transport systems across India, in addition to making retail purchases simpler. The initial concept came about as part of the National Urban Transport Policy (NUTP) in 2006, but it wasn’t until a committee was formed in 2014 that progress was made. The committee, which consisted of representatives from various departments, developed the NCFC ecosystem’s specifications.
| Representative Body | Task Assigned |
|---|---|
| National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) | Develop the card & terminal specifications for NCMC ecosystem. |
| Centre for Development of Advance Computing (C-DAC) | Finalize NCMC specification for AFC system and its interaction with Bank server. |
| Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) | Production of Gates & Reader. |
Impact and Benefits of the NCMC
The benefits of the NCMC are vast. Firstly, it can facilitate higher digital payments penetration, and save on the lifecycle management cost of closed-loop cards. Operating costs are also expected to reduce significantly. Furthermore, the rich data insights obtained can be used by operators for business intelligence, leading to more efficient operations. The NCMC Ecosystem will help further digitization of low-value payments and reduce cost for the entire ecosystem.
Last Modified: February 6, 2024