Cash crunch at banks gives hard time to senior citizens
Queues get shorter with Saturday dedicated to elderly, but many return empty-handed
MOST OF THE BANKS COULD NOT CATER TO ALL THE ELDERLY PEOPLE AS THEY RAN OUT OF CASH AFTER NOON
AMRITSAR: As the government dedicated Saturday to senior citizens for cash exchange, elderly people thronged the banks in the city with great hope and enthusiasm, but many of them still returned empty-handed, due to currency crunch which continues to hit various banks.
There was a huge footfall of senior citizens, particularly in the morning hours, at the banks and they were seen accompanied by their children, grandchildren or adult family members.
It turned out to be a heavy day for banks also because they will be closed on Sunday.
As the government had announced that only senior citizens will be entertained in the banks on November 19, they came in hordes to exchange notes, withdraw or deposit money and even withdraw pension from their respective accounts.
But most of the banks couldn’t cater to all the elderly people who turned up as they ran out of cash after noon.
“The banks which had their own chests had surplus cash on Saturday. But there are some banks (like ours) where there is no cash replenishment once we run out of it. Even if we want to help these senior citizens, we really can’t. New currency and surplus cash might flow in after Monday and things would get better,” says a manager of a public sector bank. PROBLEMS GALORE
The senior citizens were unable to stand and wait for long. They also needed support to walk and climb stairs, if any. Several of them were exhausted due to movement they are not used to in their everyday life.
Joginder Kaur, a 78-year-old paralysis patient who was on her wheelchair, said, “The initiative (demonetisation) taken by the government might be good-intentioned, but the common man, specially the elderly people, are facing a lot of inconvenience and hassles.”
She added, “The move might bring a change in coming times, but for now all I know is that banks have become very crowded and in our age we do not have energy to be part of this rush.” Jaswant Singh, an 84-year-old retired policeman, seemed elated after getting lower denomination notes and also a new currency note of `2000.
“At this age, it’s a big hassle to pull yourself out of the comfort of cosy home. My body is fragile and I cannot move so much. Though the bank officials offered me a chair as the queue was long, but still the overall process was quite tiresome.”
For Krishan Kumar, a retiree, it was a disheartening experience as he had come to withdraw his pension, but had to return empty-handed due to cash crunch. RAJYA SABHA MP MAKES ROUND OF BANKS
Meanwhile, Rajya Sabha MP Shwet Malik visited various banks in the city to make an on-the-spot assessment of the service being provided to senior citizens. He lauded bankers who were putting in extra efforts to provide comfort to the elderly. He also asked them to set up separate counters for senior citizens and women in the coming days. SPL CASH EXCHANGE COUNTERS AT AIRPORT With a view to facilitating passengers in the prevailing cash crunch scenario, the Airport Authority of India (AAI), in association with the State Bank of India, has installed two cash counters at the Sri Guru Ram Dass Ji International Airport here.
One counter has been set up at the arrival terminal of the airport and the other at the departure terminal.
Airport director VV Rao said, “This facility is for passengers. Anybody flying in and out of Amritsar can get their old notes exchanged with new ones, as per the norms. We have already made parking at the airport free.”