Rahul Gandhi too stands in line for note exchange, smiles for selfies

November 11, 2016

New Delhi, Nov 11: At a bank in central Delhi, there was commotion when Rahul Gandhi suddenly arrived and tried to join the queue.rahul-gandh

Millions across India spent long hours at banks and ATMs today trying to withdraw cash after Prime Minister Narendra Modi suddenly declared Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes "worthless pieces of paper" on Tuesday.

Mr Gandhi, one of the most protected politicians in India, plunged right into the scrum of people at a State Bank of India branch on Parliament Street.

"I have come to exchange Rs. 4,000. My people are in pain and are suffering, I have come to stand with them," the Congress Vice President told reporters.

Surrounded by personnel of the Special Protection Group, the 45-year-old offered to stand in the queue but was whisked away. "I want to stand in the line, with my people who are suffering. But as soon as I came, they moved the people inside...," he complained.

Taking a swipe at PM Modi and the government, he said, "The government should be for these people, not a select 10 or 15 people who are not here."

Mr Gandhi gamely posed for selfies with customers who were stunned to find a VIP in their midst.

Asked repeatedly why he was there, Mr Gandhi replied: "You will not understand that. You or your millionaire bosses or the media or the government will never understand what these people are suffering."

The BJP accused the Congress leader of playing to the gallery at a huge inconvenience to people.

"Rahul Gandhi is adding to the chaos. The people do not buy this, they are not interested in theatrics," said BJP spokesperson Shaina NC.

PM Modi's decision to take the two highest currency notes out of circulation has been applauded by many as a strong step against black or untaxed money but many opposition politicians have criticised the government, alleging hardship to the poor.

Yesterday, there were long queues as people hurried to exchange their old notes and withdraw new ones at banks. Today, there was a similar sight at ATMs, which reopened after three days of preparing for the turnaround.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
April 6,2020

New Delhi, Apr 6: With an increase of 490 cases in the last 12 hours, the total number of COVID-19 positive cases in India climbed to 4067, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday.

As many as 109 deaths have been reported across the country due to the deadly disease.
There are 3666 active cases in the country while 292 people have been cured/discharged/migrated.

Maharashtra has reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases so far, standing at 690, followed by Tamil Nadu and Delhi with 571 and 503 cases respectively. 

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
May 9,2020

New Delhi, May 9: With 3,320 coronavirus cases and 95 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, India's COVID-19 cases rose to 59,662 on Saturday, informed the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The total number of active cases in the country now stands at 39,834 while the number of cured/discharged/migrated stands at 17,847.

The country has reported 1,981 deaths so far, added the Ministry.

Maharashtra has the highest number of cases with 19, 063 followed by Gujarat with 7,402 cases and Delhi with 6,318 cases.

Meanwhile, the country continues to remain in a lockdown slated to end on May 17.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
January 20,2020

New Delhi, Jan 20: Surging inflation and slowing growth are raising serious concerns about the future growth prospects of the economy and as a remedial measure the government should resolve supply-side hurdles and ensure more stringent governance norms, a report said on Monday.

According to the Dun and Bradstreet Economy forecast, even though the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) turned positive in November 2019, it is likely to remain subdued.

"Slowdown in consumption and investment along with high inflationary pressures, geopolitical issues and uncertainty over the recovery of the economic growth are likely to keep IIP subdued," the report noted.

Dun and Bradstreet expect IIP to remain around 1.5-2.0 percent during December 2019.

As per government data, industrial output grew 1.8 percent in November, turning positive after three months of contraction, on account of growth in the manufacturing sector.

On the price front, uneven rainfall along with floods in many states and geopolitical issues have led to a surge in headline inflation even as demand remains muted.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) in December rose to about five-and-half year high of 7.35 percent from 5.54 percent in November, mainly driven by high vegetable prices.

"The sharp rise in inflation has constrained monetary policy stimulus while revenue shortfall has placed limits on the government expenditure," Dun & Bradstreet India Chief Economist Arun Singh said.

According to Singh, growth-supporting measures and deceleration in growth are likely to cause slippage in fiscal deficit target by a wider margin.

"The government should focus on taking small steps to address the slowdown; in particular, resolve the supply-side hurdles and ensure more stringent governance norms," Singh said.

Unless these concerns are addressed through a comprehensive policy framework, it will not be easy for India to clock a sustainable growth rate to become a USD 5 trillion economy, he added.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.