RBI to announce facility for NRIs to exchange old notes
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Saturday said that it will introduce a facility for exchange of old specified…
The sudden demonetisation of Rs.500 and Rs.1000 currency notes has put the farmers in a fix, with the reaping of paddy, sowing of potato seeds,buying of seeds and manure coming to a standstill. The farmers now fear crop losses owing to pests and insects. Sunil Nandy, a farmer from Goghat, is worried about raising the potato crop as the sudden ban on old notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 has left him with no ideas how to protect his crop. Nandy is unable to procure the much needed manure and pesticides for proper growth of the potato crop and shielding it against the attacks of pests and insects. Nandy said nobody is ready to accept the high-denomination currency notes.
“I do not have enough smaller currency notes to purchase manure and pesticides to save the potato crops. We, being farmers, do not understand the banking system, nor do we have the time to waste standing in long queues to get the discontinued notes exchanged,” he said.
Soumen Medha, a potato seed businessman, who had invested a huge amount to purchase potato seeds from Jalandhar has been forced to give out the potato seeds to the potato cultivators on credit.
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The demonetisation move has completely brought a halt to monetary transactions between seed dealers and the purchasers. Medha said, “I cannot wait till the currency problem settles. If the potato seeds are not sowed at the proper time, they will rot, causing a huge financial loss to me. I am left with no other option than to give the seeds to the potato cultivators in credit.” Meanwhile, Haradhan Koley, a farmer from Patulsara in Goghat,who is unable to pay his daily labourers their daily wages of Rs 160, has made a deal with them. He has offered to buy daily groceries and necessary household items for the daily labourers from the market in credit.
Neman Bhakshi, Kartic Patra, Mahadeb Dholey and other daily wage labourers are happy to work for Koley in return. This would not only allow Koley to get enough labourers to reap the potato crop, but also move them to cold storage and save them from getting damaged.
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