TY - JOUR

T1 - Your Data or Your Life

T2 - On demonetisation, cashlessness and digital panopticon in India

AU - Coin, Francesca

PY - 2019/9/15

Y1 - 2019/9/15

N2 - Over the past few years, there has been a growing discussion about cashlessness. In several countries, economists, policy markers and financial institutions have advocated for a transition towards digital transactions, arguing that cashlessness can become an instrument of governance pivotal to the achievement of a more transparent and inclusive society. Conversely, cash has been described as a symbol of deviance, a symptom of illegal activities such as tax evasion and corruption. This paper focuses on the transition towards cashless transactions in India. Drawing on Noemi Klein's definition of the shock economy, it argues that demonetisation in India can be considered as a shock therapy meant to facilitate the pursuit of a pro-corporate agenda. In a cash-based economy like India, demonetisation created a state of shock that forced large sectors of the population to adapt to digital transaction, in a process that undermined informal activities and used fear as a levy to push forward an agenda that largely benefited big credit card companies, the IT sector and fintech.

AB - Over the past few years, there has been a growing discussion about cashlessness. In several countries, economists, policy markers and financial institutions have advocated for a transition towards digital transactions, arguing that cashlessness can become an instrument of governance pivotal to the achievement of a more transparent and inclusive society. Conversely, cash has been described as a symbol of deviance, a symptom of illegal activities such as tax evasion and corruption. This paper focuses on the transition towards cashless transactions in India. Drawing on Noemi Klein's definition of the shock economy, it argues that demonetisation in India can be considered as a shock therapy meant to facilitate the pursuit of a pro-corporate agenda. In a cash-based economy like India, demonetisation created a state of shock that forced large sectors of the population to adapt to digital transaction, in a process that undermined informal activities and used fear as a levy to push forward an agenda that largely benefited big credit card companies, the IT sector and fintech.

KW - Aadhaar

KW - cashlessness

KW - demonetisation

KW - digital panopticon

KW - digital money

KW - cash

KW - India

U2 - 10.3280/SL2019-154003

DO - 10.3280/SL2019-154003

M3 - Journal article

VL - 154

SP - 44

EP - 59

JO - Sociologia del Lavoro

JF - Sociologia del Lavoro

SN - 0392-5048

IS - 2

ER -