As speculation of a cash crunch has been rife since the morning, finance minister Arun Jaitley stepped in to assuage people’s fears. He assured the country that there was adequate currency in circulation, and that if a temporary shortage did exist, it was only some areas and was being tackled.
Have reviewed the currency situation in the country. Over all there is more than adequate currency in circulation and also available with the Banks. The temporary shortage caused by ‘sudden and unusual increase’ in some areas is being tackled quickly.
— Arun Jaitley (@arunjaitley) April 17, 2018
As expected, the mainstream media and the rumor-mongers have been having a field day. The potential for such a situation to escalate with the speed at which information travels in today’s day and age, was immense. People could have come out en-masse and withdrawn large sums of money from ATMs, and that might have actually caused a shortage. But people are certainly wiser than those who get an adrenaline rush spreading these rumors, and seem aware of the fact that enough safeguards are in place to ensure that such a situation does not arise.
One of our properties, the Facebook page which goes by the name of The Frustrated Indian, decided to dispel these rumors and get a sense of ground realities. Our followers, who are more than a million strong, are spread across the country. They brought us real-time updates from the ground.
Most people, from various parts of the country, have confirmed to us that there is no shortage in and around their area.
This one comment of course, summed it up beautifully. It had been our suspicion all along.
We thank everyone who took it upon themselves, took the trouble to check, and helped us dispel unnecessary rumors about cash crunch. Dispelling this sort of talk is the need of the hour, so that we may be able to avert a crisis.
With the credibility that the mainstream media enjoys today, it is better to wait and watch every story carefully, instead of panicking and acting in haste. If there are any areas which may be affected, the government has assured us that they will take care