KOHIMA: Even a month after demonetisation, scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes are being widely circulated throughout Nagaland.
The insufficient provision of new Rs 500 notes and hike in businesses during the festive season of Hornbill and pre-Christmas are the main reasons for the acceptance of old notes.
"A very few ATMs in Kohima town and vicinity are disbursing new Rs 500 notes. The old notes are accepted and returned as change precisely due to shortage of new notes. As more new notes come, use of old notes will go down," hoped Naomi Ao, owner of a restaurant in central Kohima.
According to government estimates Nagaland has been visited by over 80,000 tourists in the last one week. The acceptance of old notes has given the tourists a window to 'dump' their old notes which are not being accepted elsewhere.
"I was travelling from Delhi to my hometown Tinsukia in Assam and came to visit Hornbill Festival. I had several old notes, which I have spent on buying shawls at Hornbill Festival and liquor in Kohima," said Jeet Borthakur, a tourist.
This was rampant even though the SBI ATM in Kisama heritage village, where Hornbill Festival is being held was one of the few ATMs where special provision of Rs 500 notes were made keeping in mind the tourist inflow.
"A special provision of filling the ATM with new Rs 500 notes was done in Kisama heritage village keeping in mind businesses generated due to tourist inflows during Hornbill festival," a bank official at the bank kiosk in Kisama said.
However, traders in Kohima and vicinity say they accept the old notes only when the amount of purchase is close to the amount of old note offered. "If a person buys close to Rs 800 or Rs 900 and offers Rs 1,000 notes, how can I ask him or her to give me in Rs 100 notes when we know new Rs 500 notes are also scarce. So, we accept it. However, if the purchase is Rs 100 or Rs 200 and he or she offers Rs 500 or Rs 1,000, we don't accept it," said Veronica Ao, a trader in Old NST area of Kohima, where night-bazaar is held every night for the ten days of Hornbill festival.
The traders who have accepted the old notes during the tourist season say they will deposit the old notes after Hornbill festival is over.
"I would take all my old notes and deposit them after Dec 10, when Hornbill gets over. I am also trying to push off my old Rs 500 notes to customers as much as I can," said Hinotoli, an eatery owner. Exchange of old notes were stopped after November 24.
However, others feel they will be able to 'push' the old notes to the rural areas of the state where ATMs or banks are scarce. "Many villages have never seen a bank or an ATM. The old notes maybe sent there gradually over commerce with the farmers," said wholesale dealer Santosh Singh in Kezieke area of Kohima.