Here is a concise summary of the provided text:
**Title:** Celebrating India's Independence Day through a Digital Payments Challenge
**Overview:**
* The narrator reflects on India's 75+ years of independence, from poverty and low literacy to becoming a digital payments leader.
* Sponsored by Scaler, a tech-learning platform, the narrator takes on a challenge to complete a trip to a randomly selected state (Andaman's Port Blair) using only digital payments (UPI - Unified Payments Interface).
* The narrator completes three challenges:
1. **Adrenaline pumping activities**: Books a jetski ride using UPI.
2. **Remote wilderness expedition**: Takes a self-guided scooty ride in a forest, enjoying snacks and UPI-accepted shops.
3. **Cashless souvenir hunt**: Buys souvenirs using UPI, except for a minor setback at an entry counter.
**Key Takeaways:**
* India's rapid progress in digital payments, with UPI being adopted globally.
* The country's economic growth, now the 5th largest economy, surpassing the UK.
* A visit to the Cellular Jail (Kala Pani) highlights the sacrifices of India's freedom fighters, contrasting with the nation's current progress.
**Promotional Aspect:**
* Scaler, the sponsor, offers tech-learning programs in software development, data science, and machine learning, with a focus on upskilling and placement support.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text, excluding opinions, with each fact numbered and presented in short sentences:
1. **India's Independence Day**: India gained independence on August 15, 1947.
2. **Initial State of India**: At independence, India had 16% literacy and 80% of its population lived in poverty.
3. **Unified Payments Interface (UPI)**: India has developed a home-grown digital payments system known as UPI.
4. **UPI Transaction Record**: UPI transactions hit a record high in May (no specific year mentioned).
5. **India's Contribution to Real-Time Digital Payments**: India contributes 40% to real-time digital payments globally.
6. **Location of Kala Pani**: The colonial prison known as Kala Pani was located on Andaman Island.
7. **Veer Savarkar International Airport**: The airport in Port Blair, Andaman, is named Veer Savarkar International Airport.
8. **Settlement in Andaman**: After independence, the government settled people from different states in Andaman to increase the population.
9. **First Tricolour Hosting**: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose hosted the Tricolour for the first time in 1943 at a location in Port Blair.
10. **Cellular Jail Construction**: The construction of Cellular Jail (Kala Pani) started in 1893 and was completed in 1906.
11. **Cellular Jail Capacity**: The jail had 693 cells, each designed to hold one prisoner.
12. **Treatment of Prisoners**: Prisoners were subjected to harsh conditions, including minimal food, limited water, and physical labor.
13. **Punishment in Kala Pani**: One form of punishment involved extracting 30 pounds of oil per day.
14. **UPI Global Adoption**: Countries like Singapore, France, and the UAE have adopted UPI as an accepted form of payment.
15. **India's Economic Growth**:
* **GDP Growth**: India's GDP growth milestones include reaching its 1st trillion in 67 years, the 2nd in 8 years, and the 3rd in 5 years.
* **Current GDP Rank**: India has surpassed the UK to become the 5th largest economy globally.
* **Projected Growth**: India is expected to surpass Germany's GDP rank by the end of the year or early next, becoming the 4th largest economy.
* **Pre- and Post-Pandemic Growth**: India was the fastest-growing large economy both before and after the pandemic.