KATHMANDU, SEP 21 - Amid reports of banks running short of banknotes even to cash cheques, Nepal Rastra Bank started delivering paper money to various banks from Sunday.
The general public, civil servants, teachers and pensioners have not been able to get money from the banks due to a scarcity of notes right before the Dashain festival. There is a shortage of high denomination notes in the market, said bankers.
NRB executive director at the Currency Management Department Ashwini Kumar Thakur said that the central bank provided notes worth Rs. 740 million to the banks in the Kathmandu Valley only on Sunday.
Likewise, banknotes were delivered to Dhulikhel, Chautara, Charikot, Dhading, Trisuli, Dhunche, Pokhara, Diktel, Sallereri, Okhaldhunga and Manthali on Saturday and Sunday, according to him.
"The money will be delivered to Pokhara again and Taplejung on Monday," he said. NRB said that it had already supplied notes in its 64 note funds (NRB account in commercial banks in which NRB deposits notes before delivering them to the banks) across the country.
"People should not panic," Thakur assured. "They will be able to draw money from the banks before Phulpati."
After NRB received the first instalment of a delivery of Rs. 500 denomination notes from a France based printing company on Friday, it started delivering them from Saturday. The central bank has received notes worth Rs. 4.5 billion.
NRB could not ensure adequacy of notes as delivery of newly printed notes was delayed. "These notes should have been delivered to us
a month ago but the
company failed to give delivery showing some problems," Thakur said.
The bank is yet to get delivery of Rs. 15 billion from that company which NRB said would be arriving right after the Dashain festival.
Janardan Acharya, chief executive officer of Rastriya Banijya Bank, the largest
bank in the country, said
that banks were facing a shortage of notes nationwide. "There is a scarcity of notes even in the Kathmandu Valley," he said.
According to him, about Rs. 70 million out of Rs. 100 million delivered by NRB
was withdrawn in a single
day on Sunday at its Dhulikhel branch.
"We are more concerned about the shortage of money affecting our credibility among the people," he said. "It is shameful for a bank to be unable even to cash cheques."
CEO of second largest bank, Nepal Bank Limited Binod Atreya said NRB's delivery of notes had failed to fulfil the demands of the people although the bank has been able to provide a certain amount of money to the customers.
"People should also change their spending habit," he said. "If people withdrew money from the bank as per the minimum requirement, it would be easier for the banks to deliver money."
Jhapat Bohora, president of Nepal Development
Bank's Association said
that governor Bijaya Nath Bhattarai had assured him of solving the problem within two-three days.
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