The statement by the central bank came as ATMs opened to the public after two days.
As huge, angry scrums surrounded ATMs and lined up at banks to collect the new currency that replaces old high-denomination notes, the Reserve Bank of India has urged "members of public to be patient", stating that there "is enough cash available with banks and all arrangements have been made to reach the currency notes all over the country." (Scroll down to read entire RBI statement.)
The statement by the central bank came as ATMs opened to the public after two days. Many ATMs did not dispense money at all; others ran dry very quickly.
The Reserve Bank of India said some banks are still working on recalibrating their cash withdrawal machines, partly to ensure they are compliant with the temporary limit of Rs 2,000 per card per day.
On Tuesday night, in a move described as audacious and praised by many entrepreneurs and financial experts, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that starting in just four hours, at midnight, Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes would be removed from circulation. He said the initiative seeks to control both undeclared or black money, and check terrorists who use counterfeit of fake Rs 500 notes. The new Rs 2,000 note and Rs 500 note introduced yesterday in banks have features that make them easier to track and difficult to forge.
PM Modi asked people to bear with short-term inconveniences as his government pushes the country towards a cashless economy.
COMPLETE TEXT OF RBI STATEMENTIn a statement issued today, the Reserve Bank of India has said that consequent to the withdrawal of Legal Tender Character of existing ₹ 500 and ₹ 1000 Bank Notes, it has made arrangements to distribute the notes in new ₹ 2000 and other denominations across the country.
There is enough cash available with banks and all arrangements have been made to reach the currency notes all over the country. Bank branches have already started exchanging notes since November 10, 2016.
As mentioned in RBI communications, it may take a while for the banks to recalibrate their ATMs; once the ATMs are functional, members of public will be able to withdraw from ATMs upto a maximum of ₹ 2,000 per card per day up to November 18, 2016; and after that up to withdraw ₹4000 per day per card. Several ATMs have started functioning from this morning as the banks could complete recalibration of these machines to allow withdrawals up to ₹ 2000 to begin with.
The facility for exchanging the withdrawn denominations of ₹ 500 and ₹ 1000 is available for nearly 50 days. The Reserve Bank appeals to members of public to be patient and urges them to exchange their old notes at their convenience, any time before December 30, 2016.