The spiralling effect of demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes all over India covering all sections of people has had little impact in a number of remote rural pockets in Chittoor district, particularly the areas bordering with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Over 10,000 families living in remote hamlets and tribal thandas in Kuppam, Ramakuppam, Gudupalle and Shantipuram mandals of Kuppam assembly constituency and the neighbouring Palamaner constituency flanked by Tamil Nadu and Karnataka borders find the going smooth with the demonetisation move making no difference in their lives.
For instance, most of the habitations like Arimanupenta, Brahmadevara Chenlu, Narayanapuram and Parvathipuram hold people who eke out their livelihood as daily wagers and agriculture labourers criss-crossing into the neighbouring States. Till six months ago, several families used to dabble with illicit liquor trade. After the threat of scrapping of ration cards, the illegal vocation came to an end in most areas, forcing the inhabitants to work in brick kilns and fields.
No savings
These sections earn about Rs. 200 a day, and it would be half in the case of a woman worker. The payments are made either weekly or twice in a week, while the daily wagers in a majority of the cases skip work for two to three days in a week. This way, they hardly earn Rs. 600 a week, and the earnings would be completely gone as and when they land in their hands.
Jayamma (65) of Kuppam mandal observed that she and her sister work at a brick cutting unit earning Rs. 600 a week per head. "The payment we got used to go for clearing our weekly debts at petty shops in town. We hardly possess any savings. In a week's time, we could at the most see a single Rs. 500 note," she said.
Migration to towns
Another feature of their lifestyle is that they leave the infirm and old people at home, while the other family members leave for towns and fields to earn their livelihood. "There is no question of any savings here. We just hold small cash in Rs. 100, 50, 20 and 10 denominations, and considerable cash in Rs. 5 coins," Velu, a farm worker in Gudipala mandal, said. His colleagues too observed that they hardly handle Rs. 1,000 note.
Though several of the residents of these villages opened their bank accounts during the Jan Dhan Yojana campaign, later they found no necessity to visit banks, either for withdrawals or for making deposits.
Meanwhile, Kuppam circle inspector M. Rajasekhar said that except for the trouble of people producing Rs. 500 and Rs. 100 notes while travelling in RTC buses, there was not much effect of demonetisation in the rural side.
