Udhaar is the everyday word across much of India for selling on credit. A kirana store gives a regular family a month's groceries against the khata; a hardware dealer lets a plumber take fittings and settle after the job; a wholesaler ships to a retailer on 30 days. Most Indian trade runs on it.
Why it is hard to manage
Udhaar is built on trust and memory. The difficulty grows with the number of parties:
- small amounts across many customers add up to a large sum;
- part payments are hard to set against the right bill;
- nobody can say at once who has owed money longest;
- asking for money feels awkward when the record is unclear.
Good practice
- Record every credit sale against the customer at the time it happens.
- Record every payment, including part payments, against bills.
- Set a limit for each customer and agreed credit days.
- Look at dues by age every week, oldest first.
A dealer who knows that ₹3,40,000 is owed, and that ₹90,000 of it is over 60 days old with four parties, can make four calls. In MatruOS you can type "who owes me?" in the Ask box and get the list with amounts.