BENGALURU: It has been a month since demonetisation came into force, but there has not been any substantial improvement in the cash situation. Unavailability of cash continues to haunt all, the impact of which was felt most on pay. Most ATMs remain non-functional and banks continue to have limited currencies. The new Rs 500 notes are yet to reach people.
While initially citizens had welcomed demonetisation with open arms, the errors in implementation of the move has attracted criticism. Shashank Gowda, a resident of HSR Layout says, “There are a few ATMs in this area that never worked in the past month. I had to visit a bank on two occasions to withdraw money as I had to pay my rent. I have not seen the new `500 note even now.”
A security guard at an ATM near Yelahanka says, “From the last 15 days, the ATM has been shut as no cash was deposited.”
When Express spoke to a senior official from a nationalised bank, he said, “We have witnessed a reduction of deposits of demonetised notes. While exchange of old notes has stopped, queues for withdrawal are as is. We have to serve innumerable customers with limited cash. Another major issue is the fact that `500 notes continue to be scarce. It is limited to a few banks for circulation purpose.”
Ashwani Rana, Vice President, National Organisation of Bank Worker’s says, “People are hoarding the new notes due to panic and that is the larger issue. The RBI has released more than `3 lakh crore in the market. People continue to deposit old notes and thus the scarcity is going on. The recycle is not taking place.”
Can’t bank on Banking services
Cash crunch continues to affect banking services like updating of passbook. Many citizens who have deposited cheque in the cheque box have not received the money for 10 days. Banks like SBI have been avoiding works like issuing bank statements or updating of passbooks.