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ATMs could not have been calibrated (before the announcement) because of secrecy issue
- Union Finance Minister
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Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday regretted hardships caused due to withdrawal of high denomination notes but advised the public to be patient as the move will have larger benefits for the economy in long term.
He said it may take up to 3 weeks for all the 2 lakh ATMs to operate normally as each one has to be calibrated individually to dispense the Rs 2000 and the Rs 500 notes besides the Rs 100 notes.
Assuring that the RBI and banks have stacked up enough currency to replace the Rs. 14 lakh crore worth of Rs.1000/500 notes that have been declared invalid, he said the government is constantly monitoring the situation as it is a “massive operation“.
As banks have been asked to remain open this weekend to cope with the rush, the Finance Ministry held a video-conference call with top RBI officials to assess the emerging situation and coordinate currency distribution across the country.
At a hurriedly called press conference, Mr. Jaitley urged people not to flock the banks to exchange the now-defunct banknotes, asking them to stagger it over the 50-day window provided by the government for the purpose.
>> More on pg 11
