Old cash can buy fuel & milk for 10 days more

The government has extended by 10 days the deadline for use of scrapped 500 and 1000 rupee notes for paying at Mother Dairy outlets buying petrol and diesel and filling stations and paying utility bills as the cash crunch has crippled trade.

The government extended use of old defunct Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes for paying household utility bills, fuel, taxes and fees and purchases from cooperative stores till November 24.

While withdrawing Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes from the intervening night of November 8-9, the government had allowed use of the old currency at government hospitals, railway ticketing, public transport, airline ticketing at airports, milk booths, crematoria/burial grounds and petrol pumps for 72 hours.

This list was later expanded to include payments for metro rail tickets, highway and road toll, purchase of medicines on doctor prescription from the government and private pharmacies, LPG gas cylinders, railway catering, electricity and water bills and ASI monument entry tickets.

As banks struggled to give alternate currency, the deadline was extended by another 72 hours.

The Finance Ministry also announced a series of steps to increase cash supply in the system, including introducing a new 500 rupee note in the recalibrated ATMs. About 1.3 lakh branch post offices will be stacked with cash and hundreds of new micro cash machines will be installed across the country.

Also, a Task Force was set up to expedite process of recalibration of ATMs as well as draw up action plan and ensure implementation of this action plan for quick changeover to enable them to dispense new bank notes of Rs 500 and Rs 2000.