AFP, New Delhi :
India’s cash machines will take several weeks to reset with new bills, India’s finance minister said Saturday, as public anger mounted over a decision to pull the highest denomination notes from circulation.
People queued outside banks for the third day straight, trying to replace 500 ($7.50) and 1,000 rupee notes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced they would no longer be legal tender in a blitz against corruption and tax evasion.
Scores of India’s ATMs were shut Friday and the ones that worked quickly ran dry as hundreds of thousands thronged to them.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said cash machines could only dispense the newly-designed 500 rupee and 2,000 notes after several weeks because of a technical issue.
“The technology takes about two-three weeks to recalibrate. The central switch needs to be changed and each machine needs to be altered individually, about 200,000 machines,” Jaitley told reporters in New Delhi.
“And because the size of the new notes is different, the machines are being recalibrated slowly.”
Jaitley reassured panicked citizens the central bank had sufficient supplies of money and that it was doing all it could to dispense the notes.
India’s cash machines will take several weeks to reset with new bills, India’s finance minister said Saturday, as public anger mounted over a decision to pull the highest denomination notes from circulation.
People queued outside banks for the third day straight, trying to replace 500 ($7.50) and 1,000 rupee notes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced they would no longer be legal tender in a blitz against corruption and tax evasion.
Scores of India’s ATMs were shut Friday and the ones that worked quickly ran dry as hundreds of thousands thronged to them.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said cash machines could only dispense the newly-designed 500 rupee and 2,000 notes after several weeks because of a technical issue.
“The technology takes about two-three weeks to recalibrate. The central switch needs to be changed and each machine needs to be altered individually, about 200,000 machines,” Jaitley told reporters in New Delhi.
“And because the size of the new notes is different, the machines are being recalibrated slowly.”
Jaitley reassured panicked citizens the central bank had sufficient supplies of money and that it was doing all it could to dispense the notes.
