The Odisha Government has urged the Union Government to direct the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to provide high denomination currency notes to 19 districts, where there is acute shortage of such currency notes.
The State Government has brought to the notice of Union Ministry of Finance that the RBI is not sending high denomination currency notes to all these 19 districts as they are Maoist-affected.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has written a letter to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in this regard and urged him to direct the RBI to lift the restrictions in the interest of the general public.
It has been pointed out that the RBI has got currency chests all over the State, and high denomination currency notes are provided to other 11 districts.
There are 33 currency chests of RBI to provide currency notes to all the 19 districts, which are left out and the RBI is not sending with high denomination currency notes these chests. The districts are Malkangiri, Koraput, Nabarangpur,Nuapada, Kalahandi, Rayagada,Gajapati, Kandhamal, Ganjam, Nayagarh, Jajpur, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar,Deogarh, Sambalpur, Sundargarh, Dhenkanal, Balangir and Bargarh.
The high denomination notes are Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes.The issue came to the fore when the district administrations of these districts pointed out that banks are short of the notes.Chief Secretary AP Padhi, Principal Secretary Finance TK Pandey and Principal Secretary Home Asit Tripathy held discussion with senior RBI officials several times.
It has been pointed out that the State Government has not been consulted while imposing such a restriction on supply of high denomination notes to the currency chests of lWE affected districts.
RBI, Odisha Region, has been requested time and again to resume supply of the particular notes to the currency chests for onward transmission to banks for providing the public.
While there are 19 lWE affected districts in the State, Maoist activities are now confined to Malkangiri, Koraput and Kalahandi,which have been identified as "severely affected" districts. However, other districts are moderately and marginally affected by lWE guerrillas. There are districts like Gajapati, Jajpur, Dhenkanal and Subarnapur, where there are no lWE activities.
As the State Government is determinedly handling the Maoist situation and the Ministry of Home has time and again appreciated the efforts of the State Government in this regard, the RBI imposing restriction is unwarranted, admit officials.
Union Minister Home Affairs Rajnath Singh during his last visit to the State had also appreciated efforts of the State Government in this regard and sanctioned over Rs 670 crore for road infrastructure in these zones.