Modi’s Money in Small-Town India
Failure — that’s what Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s stunning decision to ban the most common currency bills last month looks like in this small town in the eastern state of Jharkhand.
The first week the policy was announced we all rushed to withdraw other bills or trade in our newly bad notes for good ones. Again and again, by the time I’d reach a cash machine, often after waiting in line for four or five hours, it would have temporarily run out of cash or the network would be down. Finally, I managed to exchange notes worth 4,000 rupees (about $59) — enough to buy 100 kilos of rice — at the post office for a bag of two-rupee coins.… Seguir leyendo »