A parallel economy seems to be thriving in Karnataka’s rural areas like Anekal, despite the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.
Those in possession of unaccounted cash are believed to be depositing the same into accounts of the poor for a sum. Most of these are account holders under the Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojna, a scheme for financial inclusion, the Times of India reported.
Since the demonetisation, even dormant accounts are witnessing cash influx. “We have 4,000 Jan-Dhan accounts, of which 2,500 had zero balance till November 8, when demonetisation was announced. Now, all these accounts are filled with money. Each has not less than Rs 50,000,” Gopala Krishna DS, senior branch manager with Syndicate Bank told TOI.
The Syndicate Bank, Anekal branch is the largest in the area with 34,000 accounts (both savings and Jan-Dhan). The TOI report stated that more than 5,000 dormant accounts, which have not witnessed any transaction for years, have suddenly become active.
“Some people came to our house and handed me Rs 50,000 in cash. They wanted me to deposit it into my bank account. In exchange, they offered me Rs 5,000 to withdraw and return the money after a week or so,” Yella Reddy, an agricultural labourer from Mayasandra village, near Anekal was quoted as saying.
Branches of other banks including State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, IDBI, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank and others reportedly witnessed the same phenomenon.
Bank managers had no qualms accepting deposits in dormant accounts. The newspaper report quoted them saying that it is a way to bring unaccounted money into the system.
The bank managers were also happy as new accounts were being opened by those who did not have bank accounts. At the IDBI branch, more than 100 accounts were opened in the past three days, the report said.