At a time when reports are pouring from across the country about queues at banks and ATMs post demonetisation, villagers of Teekli, Akhlimpur, Naya Gaon and Garatpur Bas villages in Haryana have stood behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi rock solid.
Despite facing hardship due to the cash crunch as they are dependent only on a cashless Federal Bank for the last four days, villagers have praised Modi’s November 8 decision to ban Rs500 and Rs1,000 notes to fight black money, corruption and terrorism.
From farmers to barbers, to doctors and even the sarpanch of the villages, who are forced to travel to Gurugram to withdraw money with no ATM anywhere in the vicinity, termed demonetisation Modi’s masterstroke.
“We are for the move. It is just a matter of a few days. Initially after the demonistisation scheme was announced, people had some problems. We in the village help each other out. We grow vegetables in the village itself, hence we are not affected much. The farmers give the produce to the retailers and they are getting less money than before due to cash crunch but the remaining amount will be paid in the due course. If someone has not got the new currency notes, we give them the goods they wanted on credit. The only thing that is hurting all of us is ‘marriages’,” said villagers, adding that at times they have to visit a bank situated at Badshahpur, three kilometres from the village.
Sarpanch Ravina Devi of Tiklee Gaon told The Pioneer we are coping up without any ATM in the entire village. “We have asked for a ‘Yes Bank ATM’ to be installed but that will take a while. Pathway School nearby has a PNB ATM but it is defunct since November 8. There has been no cash in the bank for the last four days. I have spoken to the manager and he said there will be money from tomorrow,” she added.
In the neighborhood village of Akhlimpur too, people talked about the long-term impact of demonetisation and praised the Prime Minister for taking a bold step to put Indian on the right track.
Dr Satish Yadav, a doctor, said he, like other villagers, was happy with the demonetisation and is willing to face problem for the nation for a few more days.
Dharampal Dev, a 42-year-old farmer, said the Prime Minister has taken a bold initiative and we all need to back him.
Earlier, the lone branch of Federal Bank opened at sharp 10 am but there were limited number of villagers on the premises.
“On Saturday, we distributed Rs5 lakh and in between cash did not arrive. Once the money comes, it finishes fast. The money comes from the Reserve Bank of India. They get accumulated in a pooling centre in Gurugram and then is distributed among banks. We are expecting Rs5 lakh tomorrow,” said Vivek Chauhan, Badshapur Federal Bank manager.