Visakhapatnam: Most of the ATMs in the villages of North Andhra districts were shut during the past two months. While people are facing severe cash crunch in villages, the onset of the marriage season has made them come to the city in search of ATMs with cash. Earlier, villagers used to come to city for buying readymade garments and electronic appliances as they don’t get latest models at their place. However, all modern products are now available in rural areas too. In an unusual trend, they are now coming to the city for cash withdrawals.
R. Srinivasa Rao, from Palasa in Srikakulam district, said that he had been looking for an open ATM without a no-cash board across Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam. He heard about the availability of cash in few ATMs at Vizag and came to the city on Thursday ahead of his daughter’s marriage. “Next week, there is a marriage at our home. Lot of things are yet to be purchased. The bank manager was not ready to give Rs 50,000 cash though I have cancelled a fixed deposit in the branch. Even the recommendation from a local MLA didn’t work,” he said.
Due to the ongoing cash crunch in rural areas, some banks are not allowing customers to withdraw more than Rs 5,000 a day. To withdraw above Rs 5,000 at time, a person needs to seek the permission of the branch manager and wait until evening. If any customer wants to withdraw a larger amount, there will be no response. “Moreover, the bank officials have suggested using cards for payments. Cards are neither accepted by the purohit nor the caterer. Everyone wants to deal with cash only. I think the government is trying to forcibly implement card payments through cashless ATMs,” said Mr Rao.
In spite of repeated complaints from customers, the banks have not taken any action to control the situation. Most of the villagers have accounts in nationalised banks. The ATMs of these banks are completely out of cash. The officials of State Bank of India have not responded to our calls, while an Andhra Bank senior officer said that there is a shortage in the supply of cash from Reserve Bank of India. “We can’t mint currency. Whatever cash we receive from the public, is again being disbursed to customers. Still, we are managing to ensure our customers go from the branch with atleast some cash in their hand,” the senior official said.
