Hyderabad goes into a tizzy over currency notes

​Hyderabad: While the common people faced the brunt of demonetisation of Rs 500 an Rs 1,000 notes, middlemen in Hyderabad had a field day and were seen exchanging these notes for 30 percent to 40 percent commission near the Reserve Bank of India building.

These middlemen normally arrange small change of various denominations for the benefit of small traders and businessmen for a commission of 5 percent to 10 percent every day.

But, with banks and ATMs shut down on Wednesday, they had a field day. Many people were seen exchanging Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes with those of denominations Rs 100 and Rs 50 at hefty commission.

It was a near panic situation among the common people. Long queues were witnessed at most of the petrol pumps across Hyderabad.

Though the petrol pumps were accepting Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, the condition was that the consumer should buy petrol of equivalent amount as they did not have change.

This caused problems for many two-wheeler owners since their petrol tanks were not big enough to take that much of petrol.

Nirmal Sanghavi, a petrol bunk owner, said: “The petrol rate is Rs 72.14 per litre and now we are facing a lot of problems because we are short of change and no bank or ATM machines are working.

The customers are not ready to understand, so we first ask them whether they have correct change to buy petrol or they ready to fuel worth Rs 500.”

Talking to The Hans India, Varun Kumar, customer at a petrol pump, said: “I stood in the queue for half an hour, but could not get petrol because I did not have change and my bike cannot take petrol worth Rs 500."

“The government should have given some time so that we could have made alternative arrangements,” said another customer, Syed Ameer.

However, all of them appreciated the move by the government and felt that in the long run it would help in containing the menace of black money.

Interestingly, some collected coins of Rs 10 and Rs 5 from their piggy banks and bought essentials like milk and other products.

Answering a query, Laxmi Rao, a ticket booking officer at Secunderabad Railway Station, said that they were willing to accept Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes from passengers, but the problem was that they did not have enough change.

Almost all the passengers were giving Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. "We are running short of change, but we are somehow trying to mange," she said.

The worst affected were those who were travelling. Kinjal, waiting at a hotel near the Secuderabad Railway Station, said that he had come to Hyderabad by morning train and was now finding it difficult even to check into the hotel since they were not willing to accept Rs 500 or Rs 1,000 notes.

He said a room cost about Rs 800 and the hotel was demanding two days' rent as advance. He could manage to have breakfast and would even be able to have his lunch with a couple of Rs 100 and four or five Rs 50 currency notes. But finding a room had become a problem.

Some heated arguments were seen at the TSRTC bus stations as conductors refused to accept Rs 500 notes. Ramesh, a conductor at Mahatma Gandhi Bus Station, said that they had exhausted whatever change they had with them.

“The higher officials are making all-out efforts to get more change, but so far the efforts proved to be futile,” he said.