Those who made the switch to plastic money long before the Prime Minister's demonetisation drive--one of the aims of which is a cashless economy-have started feeling the pinch. They may not necessarily be the ones suffering in the never ending queues at banks and ATMs, but on Sunday , and also Saturday, when several such citizens produced their debit or credit card at hotels, restaurants and multiplexes, the transactions were refused. Meanwhile, the city continued to suffer the effects of cash going out of the system and very little to replace it. And while the queues at banks and ATMs have only grown longer, people are frustrated that bank branches will be closed on Monday.
The situation is particularly bad at post offices, which have never seen the kind of rush they are witnessing since demonetisation was announced last Tuesday . Hundreds of peo ple have been lining up to exchange big banknotes at every post office, with meagre staff bearing the responsibility to authenticate each bill. Also, most post offices are without cash; they say the government has made no special arrangements for them to receive banknotes to give in exchange.
Meanwhile, transporters have warned of a grim scenario, saying the supply of essential commodities may be hit."We have got no respite from the government despite camping in New Delhi for the past few days. Our operational costs depend on cash," said Bal Malkit Singh of the All India Motor Transport Congress. He said the supply of chicken, mutton, food grains and milk could be hit, apart from vegetables and fruits. Traders have already stopped loading perishable goods in trucks at some places.Transporters have scheduled an emergency meeting for November 16.
Organisers of festivities for Guru Nanak Jayanti, which is today, are finding it extremely difficult to put together the langar (community meal). Lal Khatri, president of Samarth Nagar Lokhandwala Sindhi Panchayat in Andheri West, said, "The absence of ready cash has caused immense problems. We host a langar dinner for 3,000 people in Lokhandwala Garden and so procure 100kg each of rice and wheat flour, 125kg of vegetables and so on. We are pleading with suppliers to accept bearer cheques... We have been organising Gurupurab langar for 30 years and cannot stop suddenly."
The situation is particularly bad at post offices, which have never seen the kind of rush they are witnessing since demonetisation was announced last Tuesday . Hundreds of peo ple have been lining up to exchange big banknotes at every post office, with meagre staff bearing the responsibility to authenticate each bill. Also, most post offices are without cash; they say the government has made no special arrangements for them to receive banknotes to give in exchange.
Meanwhile, transporters have warned of a grim scenario, saying the supply of essential commodities may be hit."We have got no respite from the government despite camping in New Delhi for the past few days. Our operational costs depend on cash," said Bal Malkit Singh of the All India Motor Transport Congress. He said the supply of chicken, mutton, food grains and milk could be hit, apart from vegetables and fruits. Traders have already stopped loading perishable goods in trucks at some places.Transporters have scheduled an emergency meeting for November 16.
Organisers of festivities for Guru Nanak Jayanti, which is today, are finding it extremely difficult to put together the langar (community meal). Lal Khatri, president of Samarth Nagar Lokhandwala Sindhi Panchayat in Andheri West, said, "The absence of ready cash has caused immense problems. We host a langar dinner for 3,000 people in Lokhandwala Garden and so procure 100kg each of rice and wheat flour, 125kg of vegetables and so on. We are pleading with suppliers to accept bearer cheques... We have been organising Gurupurab langar for 30 years and cannot stop suddenly."
Comments
Post a Comment