November 8 marks 6 years after demonetisation. A K Bhattacharya reveals how the prime minister and the RBI worked together for months before Modi's 8 pm speech. A riveting excerpt from The Rise Of Goliath: Twelve Disruptions That Changed India.
In a first, a special National Investigation Agency court in Mumbai sentenced six accused in a 2009 fake currency case to life imprisonment, terming the possession and circulation of Indian counterfeit notes as an "act of terrorism".
In the first of a four-part series, Business Standard takes a look at how a mint in Salboni, West Bengal, is working overtime to print currency notes.
The 50-day deadline to deposit the old Rs 500/1,000 notes in banks comes to an end on Friday but the cash crunch and queues before ATMs are likely to continue for some more time as currency printing presses have failed to meet the huge demand for new bills.
Justice BV Nagarathna said she had to dissent against the demonetisation move by the central government as in 2016, when the decision was announced, the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes comprised 86 per cent of the total currency notes in circulation, and 98 per cent of it came back after they were banned.
With the Income Tax department recovering over Rs 225 crore cash during a series of raids on an Odisha-based distillery group on charges of tax evasion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday assured the people that the money looted from the public will be returned.
Many countries advised the return the high-denomination notes to the central bank for destruction, but these continued to be legal tender. This and the introduction of a new Rs 2,000 note in India are the two major differences between Indian demonetisation and those of other countries.
In the first of a four-part series, Business Standard takes a look at how a mint in Salboni, West Bengal, is working overtime to print currency notes.
'Could the impending new crisis, vibe coding, similarly create not a disaster like what befell Indian handlooms during the Industrial Revolution but another opportunity like what the Y2K crisis created?' asks Ajit Balakrishnan.
Events proved that on every count the RBI had accurately predicted both the damage and the lack of benefit. What the RBI was hiding was the fact that Modi had ignored its concerns -- all of which turned out to be true -- and gone ahead anyway, asserts Aakar Patel.
The Central Bank has stonewalled almost every RTI query pertaining to demonetisation citing one or the other reason.
The BRICS nations on Friday underlined the need for using local currencies in international trade and financial transactions besides committing themselves to supporting rule-based open and transparent global trade. A joint statement issued at the end of the meeting of the BRICS Ministers of Foreign Affairs and International Relations, also pressed for a robust Global Financial Safety Net with a quota-based and adequately resourced International Monetary Fund (IMF) at its centre. It further said the process of IMF governance reform under the 16th General Review of Quotas, including a new quota formula as a guide, should be completed by December 15, 2023.
On November 8, 2016, Prime Minister Modi had announced the decision to withdraw Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination notes with the ultimate aim of reducing corruption and black money in the economy.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged that Modi's move was aimed at helping a few of his 'crony capitalist friends' and had 'destroyed' the Indian economy, prompting a strong response from the BJP which said the exercise was an 'attack' on corruption and black money that were rampant during the 'lost decade' of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government.
The Supreme Court in a 4:1 majority verdict upheld the government's 2016 decision to demonetise Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denomination notes, saying the decision-making process was not flawed.
There will be a lot to repair and rejuvenate -- if that opportunity even presents itself, warns Rathin Roy.
James Wilson tracks down discrepancies in the much-hailed demonetisation policy and the subsequent statements of the government and the Reserve Bank of India.
On a daily basis, an average cash logistics company transports Rs 5,000-8,000 crore worth of cash nationwide.
The hour-long episodes lurch from adrenaline-pumping to yawn-inducing, observes Deepa Gahlot.
A year's print run has been shortened to 5 months.
According to officials, seven employees of the Yojna Bhawan having access to the basement have been detained for questioning.
Abul Kalam Azad chose not to contest Congress Presidency and to throw his weight behind Nehru, instead of Patel, a decision he would come to regret. Patel would have seen his plan through, while Nehru, in Azad's opinion 'gave Jinnah the opportunity to sabotage' it, notes Aakar Patel.
IT services company HCLTech on Friday posted a 20.4 per cent rise in consolidated net profit to Rs 4,257 crore for the June-ended quarter and gave a revenue growth guidance of 3-5 per cent for FY25 on GenAI diversification and strong operational execution. For the fiscal's first quarter ended June 2024 (Q1 FY25), the revenue came in at Rs 28,057 crore, 6.6 per cent more than in the year-ago period. Seen sequentially, it was 1.6 per cent lower than the March quarter.
Crypto exchange WazirX has said customers affected by the recent cyber attack will not be able to recover their full funds even as the firm looks to restructure. At a virtual press conference, the firm's advisor said at best the company might look to return 55-57 per cent of the money. "This is what can be returned to users with the benefit of this restructuring," said Jason Kardachi, managing director (restructuring), Kroll.
Later the controversial minister Anil Vij retracted from his comments.
Opposition parties think they have until New Year's Eve to build nationwide narrative against demonetisation.
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi defended the demonetisation move, the united opposition hit back at the government over common man's suffering.
He said it may take up to 3 weeks for all the 2 lakh cash vending ATMs to operate normally as each one has to be calibrated individually to dispense new sized notes of Rs 2000 and Rs 500 besides lower denomination currency of Rs 100.
The stock exchange BSE has called off the merger of its unit at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City International Financial Services Centre (GIFT IFSC), India International Exchange (India INX), with NSE International Exchange (NSE IX), a similar unit floated by rival National Stock Exchange (NSE), according to sources familiar with the development. BSE and NSE had been in discussions for the merger for over a year, but it has yielded no results, they said.
'Some co-operative banks are dominated by politicians and were reportedly being used to launder Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.'
'With 27 days to go, the total bank deposits has come tantalisingly close to the Rs 14 lakh crores of banned notes which was in the financial system on November 8.' 'Black money hoarders may have actually laundered their black money into white,' argues Rajeev Sharma.
In view of the tense situation due to the overnight protest at the assembly premises by MLAs of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, the assembly secretariat on Tuesday issued an order banning the entry of members of Parliament and political party leaders in its premises.
The RBI has issued certain guidelines to detect counterfeit notes. Some of the common ways to detect fake are Watermark, Security Thread, Colour and Fluorescence.
Demonetisation was aimed at removing black money and corruption, but undisclosed income keeps being unearthed from various parts of the country.
From setting up cutting-edge facilities to cater to the domestic market and building capabilities of global standards, the action is building up.
The specifics will also cover what's fit and proper to be a chest manager; the insurance and re-insurance aspects; and the new capital threshold, which is Rs 100 crore now.
The event will be significant for the Congress and Trinamool Congress leaderships, cementing the proximity during the winter session of Parliament.
What's the real reason behind ATMs running dry even in states that are not election-bound, wonders Nivedita Mookerji.
Vivek Doval had filed a defamation case against Jairam Ramesh and Caravan Magazine for their alleged defamatory statements and articles against him. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sachin Gupta heard the matter on Saturday.
