Patience of Delhiites wore thin as they continued to face hardship in withdrawing cash braving long queues, accessing health facilities and commuting in public transport, with a bank holiday today adding to their woes.
On the six day since the demonetisation policy came into effect, scores of ATMs across the national capital witnessed serpentine queues as the shortage of currency pinched harder on the common man's purse.
With banks closed in many parts of the country, cash- strapped people started making beeline outside ATMs from early morning but with limited success as most of cash vending machines are running dry.
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Scuffle and heated exchanges were reported from ATMs and banks from many parts of the city, as patience of harried citizens wore thinner, who continued to reel under the financial crisis in the wake of demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.
Commuters also had a harrowing time, as lack of Rs 100 notes continued to cripple transaction with taxi operators, auto-rickshaw drivers and other public transport providers.
A pre-paid city-run taxi counter at Delhi Airport, which other wise draws good number of passengers, today wore a deserted look.
"People are not coming to book 'kali-pili' taxis with us, as they do not have ready cash, and we are not in a position to accept Rs 500 or Rs 1,000 notes," a staff at the counter said.
Drivers of these economy taxis are also feeling the pinch, with their customer base further eroding, as more people are switching to taxi aggregators through online payment mode.
"I used to get at least five passengers earlier, but today, I have not even reached three," said Ramesh, a driver, employed with the pre-paid taxi service.
Auto-rickshaw drivers are also finding it hard to make their ends meet, even as cash withdrawal limit at ATMs has been hiked to Rs 2,500 from Rs 2,000 a day.
"I used to make at least Rs 700 by evening on regular days, but today I couldn't earn even Rs 300," Rajesh, an auto-ricksahaw driver, said.
Many sections of the society including grocery shop owners, small traders, restaurant owners, are further feeling the heat as their dependence on cash is very high.
Long queues were also witnessed at ATMs inside the
premises of Pragati Maidan, where the India International Trade Fair (IITF), began today.
18 ATM kiosks have been set up by different banks this time to alleviate cash shortage faced by visitors, officials said. The mega trade fair is being held here from November 14-27.
Though it was a public holiday today, banks inside the Pragati Maidan premises, were made operational to cope with the the financial crunch.
People in private hospitals also continued to cope with shortage of currency, as new higher denomination notes are hard to come by.
Grocery shop owners, from Azadpur Mandi to Kotla Mubarakpur markets, felt more currency heat, as Rs 100 notes and lower currency ran dry, crippling transactions.
Families which have wedding due in near future, are feeling hamstrung too, as limited withdrawal of money, has put both groom and bride sides on edge.
Small retailers, which were traditionally dependent on cash transactions, are finding it hard to come to grip with online mechanism.
For the urban population, the Finance Ministry today said recalibration of ATMs has already started and they will start dispensing the new Rs 2,000 currency notes from today or tomorrow.
However, it clarified that the higher cash withdrawal limit of Rs 2,500 is only for recalibrated ATMs.
Additionally, a large number of micro-ATMs will be deployed to help people withdraw cash through debit cards.
To mitigate their hardship, the RBI has started distributing new high security Rs 500 notes from yesterday.
