Demonetization: Now withdraw Rs 2,500/day but conditions apply

In yet another late evening development, the government hiked the daily cash withdrawal limit from ATMs to Rs 2,500 on Sunday. 

On Sunday night, the government took stock of the impact and developments in the aftermath of the decommissioning of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes. On Monday morning, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, briefed the media about the meeting. To allay fears of the public lining up outside banks and ATMs, spending hours to withdraw or exchange or deposit cash, he said, "There is enough cash available with the Reserve Bank of India; there is no need for the public to feel any kind of panic."

He also said that the problem was not shortage of cash but rather it was supply. He said the government and banks were all working to ensure smooth supply of money to all. 

To ensure adequate distribution of Rs 100 notes -- now the highest denomination -- the government had imposed a Rs 2,000 daily withdrawal limit from ATMs. Das said, the government had decided to ease that and hike it to Rs 2,500. 

However, there was a caveat. Das said that the higher Rs 2,500 daily cash withdrawal limit "only applies to recaliberated ATMs...which means, ATMs that have been recaliberated with the new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 notes." In the meantime, other ATMs will continue to dispense Rs 50 and Rs 100 notes until they are recaliberated. 

While certain ATMs have been loaded with the new Rs 2,000 bank notes, the government said on Sunday that the issuance of the new series of Rs 500 notes has also commenced. The weekly limit of Rs 20,000 for withdrawing cash from bank accounts has been hiked to Rs 24,000 and the daily limit of Rs 10,000 per day has been removed. 

Apart from this, over the counter exchange limit for cash has been hiked to Rs 4,500 from Rs 4,000.