PANAJI: A week after the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes, the state is witnessing profiteering in various ways, including the old-age promissory notes and Hundis making reappearance in the form of ‘illegal’ coupons as well as chits, generated by different shops and eateries, to counter the absence of lower denomination notes, further ensuring that in such as way, their customers would be forced to return for more transactions.
The dry spell of lower denomination notes continued at the banks and the post offices, with new 500 rupee currency notes still eluding the public. Although the banks and the post offices have started exchanging now enhanced sum of Rs 4,500 from earlier permitted sum of Rs 4000, as well as giving the upgraded maximum weekly withdrawal amount of Rs 24,000, from the earlier Rs 20,000, people are demanding cash in the denomination of 100 rupee notes.
The scenario at the ATM was no different, with people having stopped queuing up before them, in the absence of enough lower denomination notes in these machines.
A Tuesday morning visit to the city-based Sahakar Bhandar, which is located in the Junta House building, revealed that the staff of the department stores run by a co-operative society refused to accept the demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, and demanded cash in Rs 100 or lower denominations.
Ironically, even though many people made payment in 100 rupee notes, these notes were not given out whenever change was needed after encashing new Rs 2,000 notes.
The other Sahakar Bhandar outlet located in the market however maintained that it would accept the old Rs 500 as well as Rs 2,000 currency notes till November 24, the deadline given by the central government for public utility services, to accept such now-redundant currency. This facility also prompted the staff of the particular Sahakar Bhandar to give back to the customers change in old 500 rupee notes. When the customers refused to accept such ‘dead’ currency, they were told that such currency could be encashed at the particular Sahakar Bhandar till November 24, thus forcing them to return to the particular departmental store.
A number of eateries and shops in the city, which were refusing to accept new Rs 2,000 currency notes from the customers, complaining about lack of change with them, during past few days lost chunk of their business. To ‘improve’ this situation, they have now either printed their own coupons or are giving out chits, instead of change, ensuring that the customers will return to them for encashing this ‘illegal’ currency.
There are however no reports about hike in the prices of essential commodities in the state.