HOW EMI CONSUMER CULTURE IMPACTED MIDDLE-CLASS PEOPLE IN INDIA

The economical state of India has been advancing and there has been rapid growth in the economical status of India. The global wealth holders are the ones who are controlling the world and running the world. Previously all the businesses were run by the government of India and there were restrictions on businesses in India this affected the economic condition of India negatively but after the 1991 economic reforms a boost was given to the private sector and this led to the increase in GDP by 6%. And there are a lot of sectors included which play important roles in the economy of India. But the pandemic and unemployment have been affecting the economical status of India for the past few years.

WHAT IS EMI?   EMI ( equated monthly installment ) is the amount of money given to the creditor by the borrower on a particular day of a month. EMI and loan both are different because in a loan you pay the interest every month but in the case of EMI one has to pay the installments for the loan at a particular rate of interest every month. EMI option allows a person to buy certain things even if he or she doesn’t have the required budget with them. There’s no such thing called no-cost EMI. If some e-commerce website shows no cost EMI then the price of the product increases and the buyer thinks that the price shown is the actual price of the product and there is no EMI. There are two types of EMI. One is EMI in arrears and EMI in advance.

WHO IS THE MIDDLE CLASS IN INDIA?

If a person earns more than 25000 per month then he or she is in a better off position than more than 90% of Indians. But in India, almost 30 to 40% of the earned money is spent on health care. The bottom 50% of Indians have nothing with them. So it’s high time that people start valuing the privileges they have.

IS EMI CULTURE SAFE IN INDIA?

Even though EMI seems to be an easy option but it is not always safe. Sometimes EMI compels the buyer to buy something which is beyond the budget of the buyer. But the buyer falls into the trap of EMI and buys the product and gradually pays the EMI as per the terms and conditions. A person should only go for the EMI option if his or her monthly income is more than the EMI.

WHY MORE PREFERENCE IS GIVEN TO EMI IN THE MIDDLE CLASS?

Now people are giving more priority to EMI than cash payment because people find it easier to do payments in shorter parts than paying in a whole. For some people, the EMI option is a loss and on the other hand for a few selected people buying any product through EMI is the best option to go for. As time progresses the value of money also changes. So EMI is good when the term is long and the product is beneficial.

If a particular product like the phone is purchased through EMI with an EMI duration of 4 to 5 years then it won’t be beneficial because the typical period of a mobile phone is 3 to 4 years at maximum. So purchasing your phone through EMI is not a safe option. Buying tech products through EMI is not a good option. If a person belongs to a business background then buying a tech product on EMI is the best option.

CONCLUSION

So everything has both good and bad aspects. EMI may be a good option for some and can be detrimental for others. Various factors are taken care of before choosing the EMI option. And the financial condition is one of the major factors to be looked after. It depends upon the individual to decide whether EMI is the best option available or not.

Parishmita Roy

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