Question

is demonetization a boon or a bane

Answer 1

The demonetisation announcement of the Government of India on 8th November, 2016 is a boon as this will augur well for the economy of the country in the long term. With this announcement, 86% of the country's currency was taken out of circulation; 20-25% of this is unlikely to come back into circulation as it was being used for running a parallel economy and a large part of it was going into funding nefarious activities. The parallel economy was avoiding payment of taxes; things will now change with the fear instilled in people that in future the Government could demonetise the newly launched 500 and 2,000 rupee notes if things did not improve. Terror activities have also received a body blow by this unexpected action. Counterfeit currency in circulation is another area where a huge success has been achieved by this sudden decision.
Restricted withdrawals from banks and close watch by the Government agencies have helped check the flow of money. Even though it will take time for India to completely digitalise the payment system, some changes are already quite apparent.
The citizens of this country are facing a few problems with the change, but it is well worth the hardship for the long-term economic health of the country.