Bisheshwar Mishra / New Delhi
Small coins of rupees one, two and five denominations were not being accepted by shopkeepers and even banks in many parts of the country, a Janta Dal (United) member Ali Anwar Ansari informed the Rajya Sabha today during zero hour.
He said due to this poor people like daily wage earners whose income mostly comprised in the form of coins were facing great difficulty. He said that this may not bother the rich but the poor like the street vendors, rickshaw pullers, cart pullers and loaders were badly affected. He said the shopkeepers instead of returning coins were giving chocolates/toffees to people. “They were not giving this to children but to older people,” he said.
Taking a dig at the government’s recent demonetization policy he suggested the government could withdraw these coins too from circulation since even the banks were not accepting them although they were issuing them. “Even the beggars in the street were not accepting these coins. If you gave them coins they throw them back on your face and may even abuse you,” Ansari added amidst laughter.
In a sudden move last year on November 8, the government had taken a decision to scrap all old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes. Coins too should be taken back in the “second phase of demonetization,” the JD(U) member suggested.
