Rush for exchange of old notes as deadline nears
The Reserve Bank has allowed Indian citizens who were abroad during November-December 2016 to exchange the scrapped notes up to March 31 and non-resident Indians (NRIs) up to June 30
NEW DELHI: The queues at the designated Reserve Bank of India (RBI) offices seem to be spilling over as the deadline for exchange of invalid notes by residents who were abroad during the cash ban window draws to a close on Friday.
The anxiety is palpable as people are leaving nothing to chance and lining up at the RBI office in the national capital from the night itself so that they get to deposit the currency the next day.
The Reserve Bank has allowed Indian citizens who were abroad during November-December 2016 to exchange the scrapped notes up to March 31 and non-resident Indians (NRIs) up to June 30.
This facility is available at RBI offices in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Nagpur only. For some reasons or the other, there are several people who have not been able to deposit or exchange the junked notes or have discovered them after the end of the demonetisation period on December 30, who are now making a lastditch effort.
“Since I am here in India for a short visit, I thought it would be prudent to finish with the RBI work on the first day itself. Therefore, I have come here directly from the airport,” Nikhil Kapoor, a US-based NRI, said. He felt that given the queue, it seems impossible that the currency could be exchanged in a day.
Disappointed, Ram Kumar, who works in Dubai, said: “There was no information about Red Channel procedure at the airport and I did not get the Customs certificate. So, I am being turned away after standing in the queue for six hours.” He suggested that the RBI should have made arrangements for checking documents of those in the queue so that elimination could be done properly for those not carrying all the papers.
An agitated Kumar said: “This is not black money. It is money that I have earned, so why is the government creating so much fuss?” Two elderly women, Usha (65) and Sumitra (80), next to the RBI gate in Delhi, have threatened to commit suicide in case they are unable to get their old notes exchanged.
“I have found Rs 41,500 in clothes. The RBI officials are saying they will only exchange the notes of NRIs,” Usha said.
On Tuesday, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal had said ineligible persons queueing up at the Reserve Bank were responsible for longer queues.
The minister said the RBI has posted detailed instructions on its website clearly showing the eligibility parameters and other necessary documents required to be tendered for exchange of old notes.
“Long queues are formed in Mumbai and Delhi only as a number of persons from the neighbouring states are turning up here. Several staff members have been engaged to attend to the large number of people at the counters,” Meghwal said.
After scrapping the old Rs 500 and 1,000 notes on November 8, the government had permitted people to deposit the same in banks up to December 30, 2016.
Meghwal stated that while there is no monetary limit for exchange of currency notes for residents who were abroad during the demonetisation period, there is a cap for NRIs as per Foreign Exchange Management Act regulations. NRIs coming to India are required to come through Red Channel disclosing to the Customs authorities at the airport the amount of nowdefunct notes and secure a certificate to be tendered at the RBI at the time of exchange.