(Image for representational purpose only)
The whole of India is still reeling from the effects of demonetisation, and the case is no different at Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). Along with the worries associated with a challenging curriculum, students have to face extreme inconvenience while withdrawing funds for their day-to-day expenses.
Rakesh Patel, a student of IIT Bombay said, “There are 3 ATMs in the IIT Bombay campus, and more often than not, only 2 of them work. Also, there’s a long queue as soon as they start working and the Rs 100 notes don’t last very long. Then, the Rs 500 notes deplete, and a lot of students are left with no option but to withdraw Rs. 2000.”
People prefer avoiding the Rs 2000 note as it’s difficult to get change, especially when using it for transactions of smaller amounts. “If you don’t want to withdraw Rs. 2000, you’ll have to go cashless. It has been a huge problem, but you can say it is slowly getting resolved,” he added.
Like everywhere, students too may face emergency situations where they need more money than the stipulated Rs. 2000. In such cases, they are left with little choice but to ask others. There’s a tech fest approaching where a lot of people from outside will be in the campus, and Patel expects long queues at the ATMs around the campus.
The situation is no different in IIT Kanpur, where most students are embracing digital forms of payment to make sure that their studies don’t get affected. “There are 6 or 7 ATMs in the campus, and there are times when none of them are working. Students have to go outside to withdraw money,” said Mayank Jain, a student from IIT Kanpur.
“All the shops and night messes have started to accept PayTM payments, and there were mobile ATMs especially for students when the situation was confusing,”said Priyanshi Mishra, a student of IIT Delhi.