ROURKELA: A fortnight after ban on high value currency notes, the situation is fast heading towards normalcy across Rourkela city with the scramble for exchange of old currency notes and cash withdrawal reducing gradually. But, limited supply of new Rs 500 notes continues to be felt as people are still reluctant to receive Rs 2,000 notes.
Sources said, Rourkela city has about 90 branches of Scheduled Commercial Banks to cater to the banking needs of citizens along with two head post offices and sub-post offices.
A host of fuel filling stations with Point of Sales (POS) machines of SBI also started disbursing cash while people on the other hand are switching to plastic money for purchases of their monthly quota of rations to cash shortage.
Regional Manager, SBI, BB Das said by Thursday 58 of 63 SBI’s ATMs at Rourkela city have been recalibrated to dispense Rs 100, Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes. The money machines are being loaded once in a day, he said adding the situation has almost reached a normal state and claimed adequate supply of cash.
Sources informed that there was acute shortage of Rs 500 notes as on November 18 and a tranche of Rs 5 crore received got exhausted by Wednesday. Moreover, the SBI branches at Rourkela had to instruct not to entertain SBI customers from neighbouring States of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh following a rush from the two places to deposit and exchange banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes by them.
On an average each SBI branch was receiving above 15 customers of the two neighbouring states, sources informed.