Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised that the demonetisation troubles would end in 50 days. As the deadline draws near, ATMs remain dry and people are asking whether their pains were worth the gains.
It is no coincidence that ‘notebandi’, the demonetisation of high-value notes by the Narendra Modi government, sounds a lot like ‘nasbandi’, the infamous sterilisation drive during the Emergency under Indira Gandhi. With long queues outside ATMs that seemed perpetually dry, the country has almost been cashless since Modi announced the demonetisation of 500- and 1,000-rupee notes on November 8. Curiously, that timed perfectly with his campaign for a cashless India or, as he twisted it, a less-cash India.
As cashless economy became the main focus, the talk of black money and counterfeit currency took a second place in the government’s scheme of things. The benefits to the economy and people of buying, borrowing, paying and selling without currency notes became the discourse from South Block, the Reserve Bank and the NITI Aayog. Indians, who had almost entirely been dependent on cash, were hurtled into a digital financial future, and most of them were caught unprepared.
Indians in cities have been using credit and debit cards, net banking, and even e-wallets to shop online, book train and flight tickets, make hotel reservations and pay the cabby, and even the maid and driver. It is those in Bharat, who are feeling let down, as in many cases their livelihood is threatened. “Modiji ne kaha ki amiron ko, paise walon ko line mein khada kar diya..lekin hum hi line mein khade hai,aur paisa hai hi nahi. (Modiji said he has made the rich stand in line, but it is we who are in the line, and there is no money.) One hears it very often in rural India.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 01, 2017 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة January 01, 2017 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Ram temple not an issue in south
Much has been said this election season about the alleged north-south divide.
Haute and sweaty
In Mumbai, where I live and work, there is a severe heatwave going on. The highest temperature this month has been 40 degrees, sweltering and humid for the coastal city.
MOVE AWAY MARY!
In many parts of the world,unique names are becoming popular
CALL OF THE WILD
Tejas Thackeray, the younger son of former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, shares his passion for wildlife conservation and photography
CEPA and beyond
Bilateral trade between the UAE and India has grown almost 16 per cent year-on-year, touching $84.5 billion
Brash and raw
When I chanced upon Raj Narain, who humbled Indira Gandhi
Lone voice of dissent
“I am keen to invite Parakala [Prabhakar] to Mumbai… What do you think? Do you know him?” A friend asked. No, I don’t know the man. And no, it is not a good idea to invite him, unless you want to invite trouble, I replied.
Modi and the Muslim syndrome
I have long been intrigued by the prime minister’s desire to hug every passing sheikh and sultan and his contrasting contempt for the ordinary Indian Muslim.
Assam Rifles not trained to guard borders; need separate force for Manipur border
Imphal is blanketed in darkness. The sun has set a little too soon in the valley, but N. Biren Singh is yet to call it a day.
SPOTLIGHT ON THE SENTINELS
Manipur government wants the Assam Rifles replaced, but the Union home ministry is focused on upgrading infrastructure and connectivity before deciding who guards the state