Question

article on demonitisation word limit 150 words

Answer 1

On November 8 2016, Government of India, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, aligning with Reserve bank of India (RBI) announced a historical move scrapping 15.4 lakh crore worth 500 Rs and 1000 Rs bills overnight, which accounted for almost 86% of the currency in circulation that time. The big move was to dig out the black money and eliminate the counterfeit notes which were responsible for naxalite and terrorist activities across the country. It was also aimed at curbing corruption and illegal trades which usually happen offline. Moreover, Govt believed that the move could push the people to switch to online payment, which is more transparent and accountable, a crucial step towards digital India. Citizens of India were given 50 days to legally exchange or deposit their hard earned white money with the banks. Govt aided petrol pumps, airports, railway stations, bus stations and hospitals were also instructed to accept the old 500 and 1000 Rs notes till December 16th. New 2000 Rs and 500 Rs bills were introduced as the replacement currency.The reaction of the people was mixed. Though the move was shocking, it was welcomed by most of the people. When the bold move was appreciated by many, few others who had billions of black cash, ran like cockroaches searching for sources to convert their black money to white. Long queues in front of ATMs and Banks troubled people and bank staffs who had a tough time to cop up with the new decision. The cap of 2500 Rs withdrawal per card per day and maximum withdrawal of 24000 Rs per account per week made the people of India furious, a country where most of the transactions happen in hard cash. Citizens turned against the Govt for improper planning and for not printing adequate amount of new currency. A few people fainted and a few people died standing in the queues which created a negative impact on the move. Opposition parties attacked the Govt and asked them to roll back the decision, but, a case filed against demonetization was rejected by the Apex court.Though it created short term problems, it paved the path to long term changes. When large and medium class shops and vendors moved to POS machines, small scale vendors started using PayTm and mSwipe for their transactions. Government promoted online transactions by offering service charge waiver, and cash prizes via NITI Aayog. Borders became peaceful. Crores of new bank accounts were opened and cities turned completely cashless. Income Tax went on a raiding spree and caught people who had thousands of crores worth black money. Though giant black money hoarders were safe with accounts abroad, small and medium scale hoarders had a tough time. Big marriages which spent crores of rupees were stalled. Though there was no limit for online transactions, many vendors did not accept online cash or cheque, which compelled the families to cut down marriage expenses. The 2.5 lakh withdrawal limit for marriages was unacceptable for many Indian families.Prime Minister wanted to give a tough outlook and send a strong signal that he can take bold decisions. He affirmed that the honest will be protected and the frauds will be prosecuted. Though the presumption was that the 3 lakh crores out of 15.4 lakh crores will not come back, 14 lakh crores has already found their way to the banking system. The black money hoarders played really well aligning with banking officials paying them up to 30% commission of the amount deposited. Central Government has instructed IT department and CAG team to conduct audits and sue the people who have cheated the country. Though many economists supported the move, few famous economists said that the move was a catastrophe in Indian economy.Let the future decide whether demonetization was a boon or a curse.