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Remonetisation Process Nearly Complete, Says Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das

"Almost all restrictions have been removed except on savings bank account of ₹24,000 per week. This too, is a matter of time."
Hindustan Times via Getty Images

NEW DELHI -- The exercise of remonetisation that began after scrapping of the old ₹500 and ₹1,000 notes on November 8 is "nearly complete" as practically there are no restrictions on withdrawals, said Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das.

"All restrictions have been removed except on savings bank account of ₹24,000 per week. This (removal of withdrawal limit) is also a matter of time," he told in an interview.

He further said currency supply and management are RBI's responsibility and the central bank will take a call in the near future on lifting the only remaining restriction, which is weekly withdrawal of ₹24,000 from a savings bank account.

"Only a few withdraw ₹1 lakh a month. Therefore, effectively and practically today, there is no restriction. I think the process of remonetisation is near-complete. I am using the word near-complete because this ₹24,000 limit is there," he said.

The emphasis will be on providing lower denomination notes.

Das said the remonetisation process has reached near completion in less than 90 days of announcement of the demonetisation by the Prime Minister on November 8.

"In less than 90 days, the whole process of remonetisation is almost complete. This speaks volumes about the way the remonetisation has been completed," he said.

Earlier in the week, RBI announced lifting of restrictions on daily withdrawal of cash from current and overdraft account as well as ATMs.

The central bank also promised to review the weekly limit in the near future depending on the pace of remonetisation.

The government and RBI had imposed limits on withdrawal of money from ATMs and bank branches in view of currency shortage following the cash ban.

These limits, however, were gradually eased, with RBI pumping in new notes of ₹500 and ₹2,000.

In the wake of demonetisation, RBI had put withdrawal limit ₹2,000 per day from ATMs and ₹10,000 per week. Customers holding current or overdraft or cash credit accounts were allowed to withdraw up to ₹50,000 in a week.

Towards November end, RBI increased the cap on savings bank withdrawals to ₹24,000 a week.

Early January, it was further relaxed to ₹4,500 per day from ATMs, but retained the weekly withdrawal limits. On January 16, RBI enhanced the ATM withdrawals further to ₹10,000 daily, while keeping the weekly limits at ₹24,000.

The central bank also enhanced the limit on withdrawal from current accounts, overdraft and cash credit accounts to ₹1,00,000 per week.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.