Necessary move, but withdrawing high-value rupee notes is painful

THE ARTICLE “It may be his biggest political victory yet” (The Star, November 30) refers.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on November 8 that 500 and 1 000 rupee notes would be pulled out of circulation. This gave a serious jolt to Indians – all of sudden they were confused as to what to do with possession of the money.

It is a giant step towards Indian economic reforms because for a long time no adequate steps were taken in order to control black (illegal) money that was worsening the economic situation in the country. As a result, many Indians are lauding Modi’s decision even though it is painful because the government failed to provide an immediate facility so new notes can be circulated to the people without difficulty.

The system and management offering by the Indian administration is ridiculous. Every day people stand in long queues for long hours in front of banks but they find it difficult to convert the old money into the new one. Some banks don’t have enough cash to give customers. New notes are given to banks in fewer numbers. Small denomination notes are not enough. How can they satisfy all customers?

It’s a big headache for people and banks to find a solution easily. The government allowed a 50-day period to change old money or to deposit money into accounts but it seems difficult for people to cope with the situation in a stipulated period.

The big notes are not accepted for public transactions, not even by hospitals, therefore many sick people find it hard to get treatment timeously because they have to first convert old notes into the new ones. That takes time.

Since independence this is the second time India has withdrawn big denomination notes from circulation. The first was in 1977 when Morarji Desai became prime minister. He abruptly abolished the 1 000 rupee bill.