Soldiers Guarding Our Borders Are Being Turned Away By RBI When Trying To Exchange Money

The demonetisation initiative by the Central Government back in November was greeted with mixed reactions. Some were overjoyed as the initiative promised to void all the black money circulating in the economy. Others were upset, presumably for the same reason. People stood in unending ATM and bank queues, desperate to get their old notes exchanged.

Several netizens wrote blog posts, made sketches, put up statuses online all arguing about the terrible execution of the move. And most of these arguments were countered by one very popular statement. ‘If our jawans can stand for us at Siachen, why can’t we stand in these queues?’

Well, the stories of these jawans obliterate that counter.

Naik Mahindra Singh, 30, was posted high up in the chilling climate of Siachen when PM Modi made the demonetisation announcement.

Due to lack of connectivity in the region, he received the news only a few days later, after which he applied for leave to get his notes exchanged.

 

He had about ₹6,000 on his person and was granted leave to get his cash exchanged only this month. In his speech, PM Modi had said that there would be an exchange provision at RBI offices until 31st of March but the deadline had since been changed.

“I did not know that the March 31 deadline had been changed. I would not have come all this way, spending another Rs 1,000 on bus fares, if I had known.”

To prove that he was in fact stationed in Siachen during the announcement, he showed a proof of troop movement to the guards outside the RBI office but to no avail.

 

Another soldier, Pankaj Singh was stationed in Maoist-hit Jharkhand during the announcement.

“I was stationed in the forests, where phones and radio communication don’t reach us. Our rations are supplied by choppers.”

There were no bank branches for miles in the area so even after receiving the message days later, Pankaj couldn’t do much about it.

 

He had inherited ₹20,000 from his late father last year but it took a while to get a certificate of succession and as a result missed the 31st Dec deadline.

“Why do I have to plead with the RBI to claim what’s rightfully mine?”

What’s more, he carried all forms of proof including his bank statement, identity proof and his father’s death certificate but was still turned away.

 

A CRPF officer, Rajesh, was training in Coimbatore last year, tried to reason with the guards at the gate.

 

While the demonetisation initiative was set in motion with noble intentions, its execution has been less than stellar. The guidelines don’t seem to have been well thought out as soldiers like Pankaj are finding it nearly impossible to exchange their old notes now. We were more than willing to use our soldiers’ efforts in our arguments to justify standing in long queues. Now, the same soldiers have received the short end of the stick and are suffering at the hands of the same initiative that was meant to benefit all of us.

There’s a critical need for a change in guidelines to accommodate our jawans. What do the readers think?

News Source: Indian Express