VIJAYAWADA: A stampede-like situation prevailed in almost all city banks on Monday with beneficiaries of Jagananna Amma Vodi waiting in serpentine queues to withdraw the amount promised to them under the scheme. They said they received a message in the morning stating that the amount have been credited to their bank accounts.
Under the scheme, mothers, who are below poverty line, of children studying from classes 1 to 12 will get a financial assistance of Rs 15,000. In view of Sankranti and as banks would remain closed on second Saturday and Sunday, women, with their children, waited in long queues for hours to withdraw the amount.
The heavy rush stalled normal banking services on the day. A woman who came to a bank to deposit money into her account had to wait for three hours. She later sought police intervention and called 100. Meanwhile, some banks said they could only give Rs 4,000 to the beneficiaries as the cash with them would be exhausted if they transact large amounts.
"Immediately after receiving the message that Amma Vodi money has been credited into my account, I rushed to the bank," a woman said as she came out of a nationalised bank. However, some alleged that they were not allowed to withdraw the money as they did not have debit cards.
Commenting on the same, a bank official said: "Since the last three days, there has been a steep rise in the number of withdrawals. To avoid cash crunch, we are taking measures and asked those customers without a debit card to apply for one. Once they do, they can withdraw from respective banks and at ATM kiosks."
Rumours
Some people rushed to banks after rumours spread that the government was taking back the money deposited as part of the scheme in case of non-withdrawal