NT NETWORK
PANAJI
Following the central government’s move to demonetise the higher denomination currency notes, people in Goa faced hardships on Wednesday in procuring essential items as they scurried for small change even as vegetable and fish vendors refused to accept the higher denomination notes.
The usual hustle and bustle and the noisy scenes were absent in the Panaji municipal market with most of the people staying away from making purchases. As a result, the market wore a deserted look and business of the vegetable and fish vendors took a hit. With the ATMs not operating and banks too closed for the day, roads in the city too remained empty.
Most of the vendors entertained customers only if they had exact change and were reluctant to accept the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. Due to lack of customers, many businessmen pulled down their shutters early.
Retailers and wholesalers in the city fish market were seen forcing the customers to either buy fish worth Rs 500 or tender exact change. According to a non-resident Indian purchasing fish in the market, a fisherwoman refused to pay him back the remaining cash after he bought fish worth Rs 400 by offering Rs 500 note. He said that the fisherwoman exclaimed she had no change and that he could leave the fish and take his money back.
This reporter came across some fisherwomen in the market sitting idle in a tense mood without conducting any business in the afternoon while looking at other vendors selling fish. On questioning, they said, “We have no money to buy fish. Moreover, as there are no customers also in the market, we are sitting idle. We won’t die if we skip business for a day.”
“The Prime Minister should penalise those who hoard money and amass wealth in crores without paying a penny to the tax department. If the government wanted to close the banks, then it should have opened mobile cash counters at every nook and corner so that no inconvenience was caused to the citizens,” said a vegetable vendor.
A shopkeeper in the city market dealing in gift items said that he had travelled extensively to many countries and added that our nation is heading towards cashless transactions wherein almost all transactions are carried out by swiping a card.
According to a fisherwoman, the poorest among the poor try and save currency notes of higher denomination so that they can get over emergency situations like sickness or any other exigency. “However, with the government nullifying the bigger currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000, our dreams have been shattered. We earn everyday to meet everyday expenses and sometimes we save little, but that too is being swallowed now,” she said.
Hussain Basha, who had been to the transport department office to collect the registration number of his scooter, complained that the person at the RTO cash counter refused to accept currency notes of Rs 500 denomination and asked him to return with Rs 100 denomination currency notes worth Rs 5,000.
“Common man has been hit hard with the demonetization of higher denomination currency notes. The whole city is empty, market is silent, roads are deserted, ATMs and banks shut, petrol pumps demand exact change. This will have a very big impact on life and business,” pointed a teacher Milli Braganza.
Scrapping of the currency notes has also affected many tourists, who have arrived in Goa on vacation. With most of the hoteliers installing boards instructing customers to tender exact change, a family of tourists from Gujarat was seen purchasing fruits worth Rs 500 in the city market on Wednesday to keep themselves from going hungry in the night.
Another tourist from Andhra Pradesh, who wanted to fill petrol in his car tank was in tears around Tuesday midnight after a city petrol pump staff told him that fuel worth only Rs 500 was allowed as there is shortage of petrol.