Demonetisation Round Up
- Demonetisation continued to rock Parliament on Day 16 of the Winter Session, with both Houses being adjourned for the day amid sloganeering.
- PM Modi flayed the Opposition for its “undemocratic” act of not allowing a debate.
- BJP leader from West Bengal arrested with several lakhs in Rs 2,000 notes.
- Slow printing of Rs 500 notes could be attributed to old and expensive imported machines.
- RBI kept interest rates unchanged in its new monetary policy.
- HDFC Chief Deepak Parekh said that demonetisation has derailed the economy.
Rs 1.5 Crore Seized in New Currency Notes by Goa Police
Goa police seized Rs 1.5 crore in new currency notes during raids that were carried out in Ponda and Porvorim on Wednesday. The police have arrested two people and further investigation is underway.
Demonetisation has Derailed the Economy: HDFC Chief
Deepak Parekh, the HDFC Chairman, said that demonetisation has derailed the economy and that the wait for stability would last until January at least. Speaking to CNN-News18, Parekh said:
Obviously demonetisation has derailed the economy in short-term. We should expect budget to take disruption into account.
He also added:
Business confidence will be high when factories are buzzing, working at 100 percent capacity.
Shots Fired to Disperse Unruly Crowd Outside Bank
A guard had to fire shots outside a bank in Punjab to disperse an unruly crowd, according to The Indian Express.
The incident took place outside an HDFC bank in Budhlada area of Mansa district.
Though there were at least three shots fired, no one was harmed in the firing.
Source: The Indian Express
More Money in Banks Means Better Economy: Jaitley
Economic changes don’t happen overnight, but the road map and agenda for them can always be laid... Decisions of this kind have pain in transition, which is regrettable, but it had been factored in. What we’ll end up achieving is to lay down this new normal, and the long term advantages of this new normal. More money in the banking system means more capacity for banks to support economy and growth. India is going to become a society in the long term with a certainly better GDP, it will become a cleaner economy.Arun Jaitley, Union Finance Minister
Speaking at the Petro-Tech 2016 programme, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that earlier policymakers were simply ‘dishing out favours to the affluent’. He added Prime Minister Narendra Modi had “the broad shoulders to face the consequences of the decision” of implementing demonetisation.
The Prime Minister had an option of doing what many others have done – look the other way. That was an easier option. He chose the harder option. I am sure that this harder option will certainly leave footprints behind as far as future is concerned. The culture of taking decisions has completely changed, policymakers in India don’t shy away even from taking very difficult decisions.Arun Jaitley, Union Finance Minister