Demonetisation Horror: Sad, but true, people are dying, fighting, while waiting in bank, ATM queues

If reports are to be believed, in the last five days 14 people have died as they waited in front of banks and ATMs to exchange and withdraw money.

New Delhi, Nov 14: Surely it can't get any worse than this, as everyday people are dying due to exhaustion and heart attack during their never-ending wait in long queues in front of banks and ATMs across the country.

On Sunday, two elderly men died, one each in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, due to suspected heart attack as they were waiting outside banks, say reports.

On Saturday, reports say three people--one from Mumbai and two from Kerala died while they were waiting in long queues outside banks.

If reports are to be believed, in the last five days around 14 people have died as they waited in front of banks and ATMs to exchange and withdraw money in the wake of the demonetisation of high value currency notes announced by the Narendra Modi-led government on November 8.

The images on our television screens bring home the horror and struggle people are undergoing as they tried their best to get hold of some cash to conduct their day today activities.

Chaotic scenes outside banks and ATMs have become normal feature.

Scuffles among customers in banks and ATMs have also been reported from across the country.

In the midst of the ongoing cash crisis, Modi met his senior ministers past midnight today to discuss plans to avoid further trouble for the people.

The government also relaxed cash withdrawal limits including removing a per-day cap of Rs. 10,000, increasing the weekly limit to Rs. 24,000 from Rs. 20,000 and allowed exchange of bills over the counter at banks to reach Rs. 4,500 instead of Rs. 4,000.

From automated teller machines, individuals will now be able to take out up to Rs. 2,500 of cash per day instead of Rs. 2,000 per day, the finance ministry said in a statement.

Experts say the ongoing cash crisis is not going to end soon, especially after the PM on Sunday asked the nation to bear the brunt till December end.

OneIndia News