BJP President Amit Shah on Sunday welcomed the lowering of base interest rates by top public sector banks in the country and said the money deposited with them following demonetisation would boost Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “pro-poor welfare” campaign. But many are apt to wonder: was it just temporary “pain”, a minor inconvenience, that they suffered on account of standing in never-ending queues at banks? This activity, termed demonetization (the act of stripping a currency unit of its status as legal tender), was implemented to stop counterfeiting of the current banknotes (some of which were allegedly used for funding terrorism).
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Speaking in New Delhi at the launch of a digital payment app linked with a nationwide biometric database, Modi exhorted Indians to reduce their dependence on cash.
The name “BHIM” is in recognition of the contribution of Bhim Rao Ambedkar for the upliftment of poor and marginalised sections of society.
How to use BHIM App?
Mr Modi did not say how the government would pay for the measures, although economists said the package was unlikely to be too costly. ‘This is the first instance in India’s history when the government and the people have fought shoulder to shoulder. For senior citizens, a new scheme assures an interest of 8% for 10 years on deposits up to Rs 7.5 lakh. “Shopkeepers and small businessmen will get more loans because of this”, he said. Now the question is, isn’t the whole objective of helping senior citizns financially about making money more easily available to them, rather than dangling an interest rate that would only bear fruit after ten long years of waiting?
Naidu said that since November 8, the Congress and their friends have been “shedding crocodile tears” over the hardship caused to the people.
Modi, who came to power in 2014 pledging to tackle “black” money, was forced on to the defensive as frustration grew at the slow introduction of new notes.
He further stated that “125 crore Indians have proved that they are willing to wait in line at banks, but do not wish to be even one step behind in the drive against corruption”.
The fourth, and striking, feature of the PM’s New Year’s Eve address is the centrality of the banks in the multilayered penance the PM offered the people of India.
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Responding to a comment that demonetisation is like finding a mouse after digging a hill, he said in a lighter vein that catching mouse is important as it eats away the wealth of poor.
