50th Day of DEMONETISATION---- banks will stop accepting deposits of old currency after Friday.......

50th Day of DEMONETISATION......E V E N T S

*****************
1. New notes

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced demonetisation, the Reserve Bank began to release new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes to banks for distribution to the public. Citizens were told they had till December 30 to deposit their defunct bills in banks, or exchange them for new notes. However, it was later announced that there wouldn't be any over-the-counter exchange of demonetised notes after midnight of November 24, but that deposits could still be made. An RBI circular relased on December 19 (which was later withdrawn for KYC-compliant citizens) said that deposits of old notes worth more than Rs 5,000 could be made just once till December 30, if the depositor could satisfactorily explain them.

Old notes could still be used for some purposes, such as buying LPG cylinders and railway tickets, till December 15.

Currently, the daily withdrawal limit at ATMs is Rs 2,500 and the weekly withdrawal limit is Rs 24,000.

2 Political parties:

A few but not all, oppose ban
While the government has strongly defended its decision, several Opposition parties - including the Aam Aadmi Party and the Trinamool Congress - have opposed the note ban. Former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh intervened in the Rajya Sabha, describing the goverment's move as "monumental mismanagement." The Parliament's Winter Session was marked by repeated adjournments, and the logjam in the legislature prompted President Pranab Mukherjee to remark at an event: "For God's sake, do your job (in a remark directed at MPs)."

However, some political parties, such as Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's Janta Dal (United) have supported the move.

3. Encouraging cashless transactions

Since demonetisation, the government has stressed on the importance of moving towards a cashless economy. For example, on November 22, the RBI doubled the balance limit of of semi-closed Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) to Rs 20,000. On December 8, the Finance Ministry announced eleven measures to promote cashless transactions, including a 0.75 per cent discount on purchases of petrol and diesel (at Central Government Petroleum PSUs) using credit or debit cards, e-wallets and mobile wallets.

4. Lucky draws to encourage digital payments
Earlier this week, the government also launched two lucky draws - Digi Dhan Yojana (for businessmen) and Lucky Grahak Yojana (for consumers) - to incentivise cashless transactions. Winners will be selected on a daily and weekly basis under the Lucky Grahak Yojana and weekly basis under the Digi-Dhan Vyapar Yojana respectively, leading up to a mega draw of Rs 1 crore on April 14, 2017, after which the scheme will be reviewed for further implementation.

5. I-T raids

The Income Tax department has conducted several raids across the country after demonetisation, the most high-profile of which was perhaps the one conducted at the premises of former Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary P Rama Mohana Rao and his relatives. Rs 23 lakh in new currency and Rs 6 lakh in demonetised notes were seized from from the premises of some of Rao's relatives and associates, officials said. However, they didn't find any unaccounted money at the former chief secretary's office or house.

6. More than 3,500 I-T notices sent

Since November 8, the I-T department issued 3,589 notices to various entities for alleged tax evasion and hawala dealings, a report said on December 25. The department is set to initiate action against an additional 67.54 lakh non-filers who carried out high-value transactions in the 2014-15 financial year, but didn't file tax returns for 2015-16, the report added.

7. Citizens turn watchdogs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said during his last Mann Ki Baat address of the year that the government was using information provided by citizens to crack down on those who have unaccounted wealth. In fact, the government asked citizens to write to blackmoneyinfo@incometax. gov.in with details about black money hoarders, and received as many as 4,000 messages as of December 20.

8. Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana

A new tax disclosure scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, opened on December 17, and will close on March 31 next year. The scheme provides for 50 per cent tax and surcharge on declarations of unaccounted cash deposited in banks. Declarants also have to park a quarter of the total sum in a non-interest bearing deposit for four years. Information disclosed under the scheme won't be used for prosecution, Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said.

9. Now, action against benami property holders

Prime Minister Modi said during his Mann Ki Baat address that his government would make a "dormant," decades-old law against benami property "operational" in the days to come. "Whatever is required to strengthen the institutions to make the benami law more effective, we will do that," a top finance ministry official said.

10. Penalty for possession of demonetised notes

The government will soon issue an ordinance imposing a penalty on possession of defunct notes after December 30. Possession of demonetised notes will only be permitted for the purpose of research and numismatics. However, the ordinance - which the Cabinet is expected to clear in a day or two - will have a clause allowing people to deposit defunct notes at RBI branches (as promised by the government) after giving reasons for doing so.

The ordinance is necessary to complete the legal process of demonetisation as banks will stop accepting deposits of old currency after Friday.......