: Paucity of cash in bank chests quelled the rush for exchange of demonetised currency notes across the State on Thursday, the last date for across-the-counter exchange of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes. However, more people were seen in queues for depositing money in their accounts, and utility payments, especially in civic bodies, saw a surge.
In Coimbatore, the bank branches did not see a rush for exchange. District Lead Bank Manager A. Kanakaraj said that the banks did not see a rush in the last few days mainly because of cash shortage. Prem Kumar, a micro unit owner, was able to deposit cash within a few minutes. “There were just five people ahead of me in the queue. There was no rush at the bank,” he said. Kannan, a petrol pump owner, said there was no big rush at the pumps for payment through demonetised currencies. “It was a normal turnout,” he said. State Bank of India Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya told reporters that exchange of currency would continue in the account mode till December 30.
Bank branches in Tiruchi attracted a large number of people seeking to exchange the demonetised notes. Serpentine queues were seen at banks at Palakkarai, around Gandhi Market, and other places. “The government should allow use of demonetised currencies at toll plazas, railway stations and other public utilities for some more time,” said A.V. Narayanan, a resident. The State treasurer of Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangankalin Peramaippu Ve. Govindarajalu called for the extension of validity of demonetised notes till December 30.
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Sixty eight ATMs in Madurai did not function due to shortage of cash. Long queues were seen in bank branches with people coming to deposit cash. Additional staff from regional offices were requisitioned in branches to speed up the process. Police personnel were deployed in some places to regulate the crowd. Madurai Corporation Commissioner Sandeep Nanduri said that the civic body had received payment of taxes in demonetised notes to the tune of Rs. 16 crore, against the demand of Rs. 83 crore, since November 8. In Tirunelveli Corporation, officials accepted payments well beyond the stipulated time.
In Ramanathapuram, most of the bank branches stopped exchange of notes as there was no rush, K. S. Suresh Babu, District Lead Bank Manager, said. Branches had stopped exchange of demonetised currencies a couple of days ago. As cash crunch continued, the branches were meeting the withdrawal demands of account holders, he said. Only some branches of the SBI had enough money to allow customers to withdraw the full weekly quota of Rs. 24,000. Though people were allowed to withdraw a maximum of Rs. 2.5 lakh for wedding expenses, the branches allowed only up to Rs. 1.5 lakh as there was a huge demand for withdrawals. In Sivaganga, the situation was normal as people stopped visiting bank branches for exchange of notes.
Several bank branches in Virudhunagar ran out of cash as the size of crowd to exchange demonetised currency notes swelled. “Yes, the crowd was little higher today when compared to recent days. However, the queues were not as long as in the first few days,” said Lead Bank Manager (in-charge), Sakthivel. While several branches managed to get replenishment from local head offices, many others could not mobilise the currencies, he added.
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(With inputs from M. Soundariya Preetha in Coimbatore, S. Ganesan in Tiruchi, L. Srikrishna in Madurai, D. J. Walter Scott in Ramanathapuram and S. Sundar in Virudhunagar).