Wages and Income Tax amnesty scheme

              How to pay the monthly wages and pensions to millions of employees and pensioners across the country?  Even if the partial payment is made through banks, few million currency notes will be required.  Small firms started coupon distribution business as weekly or fortnightly wages as an alternative to currency.  The utility of coupons is limited, as coupon is not a hard earned currency.  Private companies are directed to digitize the payment system.  This will ease some pressure on currency distribution.  Simultaneously, the central bank is printing and issuing different denomination notes day and night.  Reserve Bank of India has released less number of Rs 500 notes that has hampered routine transactions.  Banks are trying to ease the inconvenience caused to salaried class.  Now-a-days calibration of ATM work is in final stage.  Public is utilizing ATM services for withdrawal of Rs 2,500 a day or Rs 24,000 a week.  Fraction of country wide transaction is in digital mode; further enhancement of digitalization in the shortest span of time is a challenging task.  Government has recently directed banks to disburse small currency notes in rural area to cater the demand of unorganized sector.  It seems, the government is still on oxygen.  The first week of December is the test week for Modi Government.

            By now, more than Rs 9 lakh crore of Rs 5,000 and Rs 1,000 notes are deposited in banks.  It comes to about 60 to 65 per cent of the high value currency in circulation.  By this speed about 90 to 95 per cent currency will be deposited by December end.  This indicates only Rs fifty thousand to one lakh crore quantum of black money will not return back to the main stream.  How to distinguish between black money and hard earned money from the total amount deposited in banks and post offices is the biggest question?  Income tax department will have to find out ways and means to isolate the quantum of black money from the total high currency notes deposited at different destinations.  The whole exercise will be gigantic, cumbersome, complex, time consuming, painstaking and expensive.  To identify and punish the culprit is not only adamantine but practically unthinkable.

               Politicians will be the first tribe to malign the image of PM Modi provided the government fails to address both these burning issues.  Perhaps amnesty scheme is the outcome of the face saver and fiasco fear.