The Civil Aviation Ministry on Monday announced the suspension of parking charges at airports across the country till midnight on November 21 to ensure minimum inconvenience to passengers, ANI reported. The move follows the Centre’s relaxation of various conditions under its demonetisation scheme.
On Sunday, the finance ministry had instructed banks across the nation to increase the daily ATM withdrawal limit from Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,500, days after all Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes were demonetised. The amount of old currency that can be exchanged at banks was raised from Rs 4,000 to Rs 4,500. The old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes will be accepted at government hospitals, petrol stations and toll booths till November 24, the Centre said on Monday. The exemption for toll tax levied on national highways was extended to November 18.
Secretary of Economic Affairs Shaktikanta Das said ATMs will begin to dispense the new Rs 2,000 notes from Tuesday. “Supply of cash to 1.3 lakh branch post offices will be enhanced,” he said, adding that in the next few days, there will be a higher number of recalibrated ATMs that will dispense the high-denomination currency. A task force has also been set up to ensure that ATMs are ready to dispense these notes soon. Das said a large number of micro-ATMs will also be deployed across India.
In addition to also increasing the weekly cash withdrawal limit from Rs 20,000 to Rs 24,000, the Finance Ministry has advised all banks to arrange for mobile banking vans at major hospitals to be available for patients during emergencies.
State Bank of India Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya said ATMs in the country would start dispensing Rs 50 and Rs 20 notes, as soon as the situation gets back to normalcy.
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