Jaitley Says Unusual Withdrawal Leading To Cash Shortage In Some Areas,  Situation Being Tackled

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday said a temporary shortage of cash has been caused by “sudden and unusual increase” of cash withdrawal in some areas.

Jaitley tweeted that he had reviewed the currency situation and the shortage is being tackled quickly. “Overall, there is more than adequate currency in circulation and also available with banks,” the Finance Minister noted.

Media reports said that automatic teller machines (ATMs) have run out of cash in several states like Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana. Some people in Delhi have also reported of not being able to draw cash from ATMs.

Opposition parties have questioned the government, wondering if it was a deliberate move by the government to cut money in circulation or mismanagement.

Quoting Finance Ministry officials, NDTV said 85 per cent of the ATMs were functioning normally, and the problem was largely in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and parts of north Bihar. Officials said circulation of Rs 500 notes would be increased within ten days, while Finance Ministry held a meeting with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last week to take stock of the situation.

The channel’s report added that the RBI had directed banks with surplus cash to help banks facing a shortage. The sources said transactions at ATMs have also increased with the average increasing to Rs 5,000 per person per day from Rs 3,000.