Public fume over curbs on deposit of old notes

The scene is only getting worse in the city after every day since demonetisation and with additional restrictions being imposed on deposit and withdrawal limits. In addition to the severe cash crunch and weekly withdrawal limits, this move has left the public and banking community disillusioned on demonetisation. 

Asha K (name changed on request), a homemaker, was waiting for the crowds at the bank to reduce, so that she could deposit the invalid notes at the bank without much hassle. The amount, which was close to a lakh, was her savings, meticulously squirreled away over years. The fresh directives mean that she must go through the hassle of explaining why she hasn’t deposited earlier. 

“There were long queues and intense rush at the bank. Since the deadline was given by the government, I thought there was time to do it. But now, it has only gotten worse,” she explained. 

The Mount road branch of HDFC even witnessed heated arguments between a customer and bank officials when the former wanted to deposit Rs 5,000. On being asked for the source of funds, the irate customer said, “It was my savings which I kept at home.” I have another Rs 10,000 at home, do you want to accept that also?” he demanded.

Meanwhile, banks in the city are facing a cash crunch, leaving behind dissatisfied customers, who must make multiple trips to the bank and brave the queues to withdraw the money needed to run their homes or businesses. M Ahmed, a city-based businessman, said that because of the crunch, banks have been forced to ration out their cash supply. “I have had to make multiple trips. In some bank branches, the savings account limit is applied to current account holders like myself. People have now lost faith in RBI and the banks,” said the trader.

Bank officials too have been facing the brunt. C P Krishnan, State Secretary, Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) said, “With these fresh restrictions, many banks don’t even have people to allocate to enquire on why the devalued notes were not deposited before. The situation will get worse if enough cash is not made available to the banks and ATM. The RBI guidelines stated that in addition to the withdrawal limit, any money in legal tender can be withdrawn. But that remains on paper. People are hesitant to spend due to the cash crunch.”

R Sekaran, Secretary, All India Bank Officers Confederation – Tamil Nadu State Unit, said the RBI guidelines are ambiguous. “On what basis, should the bank employees decide if the reason for late deposit is valid or not? The RBI should give clear guidelines or questionnaires for bankers to take this call. We are organising a demonstration in districts across Tamil Nadu on December 21 to protest these fresh directives and cash crunch,” he concluded.