Situation more critical if RBI lifts cap on limits
'If the RBI lifts the cap from January 1, there will again be tension like in the first 30 days after 8/11.'
Hyderabad: The problem of banks having insufficient cash to meet the demands of their customers will become more critical if the Reserve Bank of India lifts the cap on withdrawals. The RBI had earlier announced that the cash limit on withdrawals will be lifted from January 1, 2017.
The pressure on banks is still so heavy that bankers would prefer the cap to continue for another two or three months, till they can manage to allow withdrawals of up to Rs 24,000 per week.
The secretary of the Andhra Pradesh and Telangana bank employees’ federation, M.S. Kumar, said that banks were adjusting the distribution of the available cash to customers at present.
“We are unable to issue even Rs 10,000 to customers at a time in view of the heavy rush and less cash. We could earlier issue just Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000 per day, per customer but, this has gone up to Rs 8,000 at present as the RBI has increased the supply of currency a little.
“We are expecting the same supply from the RBI, so require the same cap on withdrawals for another two or three months,” he said.
However, withdrawals of up to Rs 50,000 are being allowed to current account holders. “If we issue Rs 50,000 to current account holders, they will have no problem for a week. Many banks have fewer current account holders than savings account holders.
“If the RBI lifts the cap from January 1, there will again be tension like in the first 30 days after 8/11,” he said.
The All India Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA) agrees that the RBI is not supplying sufficient cash to the banks.
“At this moment, if the RBI lifts the cap, the bankers can’t serve all the customers with lesser currency. We are demanding more supply and are continuing our protest programmes across the country,” it said.
Mr Kumar of the state employees federation says, “Bankers are working very hard after demonetisation and a few have faced attacks from angry customers. Some have died due to the work tension. If the RBI lifts the cap, the same situation will be repeated.”