Scars from 2016 only getting more visible: Manmohan Singh on demonetisation

New Delhi, Nov 8: On the second anniversary of demonetisation of high value notes, former prime minister Manmohan Singh said the exercise was ill-fated and ill-thought.

In a statement Manmohan Singh, said "Today marks the second anniversary of the ill-fated and ill-thought demonetisation exercise that the Narendra Modi government undertook in 2016".

"The havoc that it unleashed on the Indian economy and society is now evident to everyone. Notebandi impacted every single person, regardless of age, gender, religion, occupation or creed" he said.

He explained that as small and medium businesses are yet to recover, it has had a direct impact on employment for youth, financial markets and infrastructure lenders and non-bank financial services firms.

"The financial markets are volatile as the liquidity crisis wrought by demonetisation is taking its eventual toll on infrastructure lenders and non-bank financial services firms. We are yet to understand and experience the full impact of the demonetisation exercise. With a depreciating currency and rising global oil prices, macro-economic headwinds are also starting to blow now," he added.

"It is therefore prudent to not resort to further unorthodox, short-term economic measures that can cause any more uncertainty in the economy and financial markets," Singh said.

The Congress is holding nationwide protests Thursday, and has demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for "ruining and wrecking" the economy.