Hyderabad: A major technical glitch in India’s most widely used digital payment system — the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) — caused a nationwide outage on Wednesday evening, leaving thousands of users unable to make transactions through platforms like Google Pay, PhonePe, and Paytm.
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The disruption began around evening hours, triggering chaos among users who rely on UPI for daily payments. As per DownDetector, over 3,000 complaints were reported by 8:01 PM, with Google Pay alone receiving nearly 300 reports of failure.
NPCI Acknowledges Technical Issue
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which operates the UPI network, confirmed the issue. In a post on X, NPCI said, “The disruption was caused by intermittent technical difficulties, which resulted in partial transaction failures. The issue has been resolved, and the system is now stabilised. Regret the inconvenience.”
Users Vent Frustration on Social Media
Several frustrated users took to X (formerly Twitter) to share their experiences. One user, Anas Khan, posted, “For the first time in my life I’ve experienced UPI downtime… uptime was 100% in Feb.”
Another user joked about the awkward situation the outage caused: “UPI hi down ho gaya, 2 dost pani puri kha ke dukan pr khade hai 30 min se 🤣” wrote Cheese Maggie.
Rohit Gupta added, “None of the UPI apps are working. UPI system is down, I think.”
In response to such concerns, UPI’s official handle replied, “Please contact your respective bank for better assistance.”
What to Do If UPI Transaction Fails
UPI failures can occur due to server overload, bank downtimes, or app glitches. Here’s what users can do when faced with such issues:
- Wait for automatic reversal: In most cases, money debited during a failed transaction is reversed automatically within minutes or up to 24 hours.
- Check bank statements: Monitor your bank account to ensure the amount is credited back.
- Contact customer support: If funds are not returned in time, reach out to your bank with transaction details.
Despite rare outages, UPI continues to be one of the most efficient and widely trusted payment systems in the country. However, experts advise keeping backup payment methods like debit cards or cash, especially during peak hours or technical disruptions.