Cash shortage to continue for 4 to 5 months: BEFI

The Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) on Thursday said currency note shortage will continue for another four to five months even if the country's all four currency press facilities work at optimum capacity.

According to them, the cash scarcity spilling over to next week will make people more impatient when receiving and withdrawing salary will become difficult.

"Cash shortage will continue even if the four currency note printing presses run at their optimum capacity. It will take four to five months to restore normalcy in cash supply," bank employees' union BEFI general secretary P K Biswas said in Kolkata.

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Biswas alleged that some customers have vandalised bank property in some of branches of public sector banks and halted banking operations due to cash shortage post-demonetisation.

As on March this year, there were 15,707 million pieces of old Rs 500 notes and 6,326 million pieces of Rs 1,000 notes in circulation, the union said.

The situation "can turn worse" in a week or so if the customers face difficulties in withdrawing their salaries from banks and ATMs, BEFI said.

It said printing ink and dice for new denomination notes have reached the Salboni printing facility in West Bengal, but when the actual printing will start is yet to be known.

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