Amaravati: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has offered the Central government a major advice in the fight against corruption.
Naidu called for scrapping high-denomination currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 2,000, saying it could help break the cycle of corruption and make wealth creation and poverty eradication easier.
A strong advocate of digital currency and technology-driven governance, Naidu said he had earlier submitted inputs for a report on the subject and repeatedly raised the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“I was the one who gave inputs for the digital currency report. I had urged the Prime Minister to consider this earlier and I am demanding it again now. I will keep raising this issue. Currency denominations of Rs 500, Rs 1,000 and Rs 2,000 should be scrapped. Only Rs 100 and Rs 200 notes should remain,” he said.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) withdrew Rs 2,000 notes from active circulation on May 19, 2023, but they continue to remain legal tender.
Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) is a key ally of the BJP-led NDA Central government, and his opinion carries weight.
Naidu’s suggestion came a day after the 10th anniversary of the Modi government’s demonetisation move. On November 8, 2016, the government withdrew Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes from circulation, announcing the decision as a measure to curb black money, counterfeit currency and corruption.
The TDP chief was of the view that if technology is implemented perfectly, “wealth creation is not difficult and eradicating poverty is not difficult either.”
He believed flaws in the system at various levels had allowed corruption to become a vicious circle.
“Since systems everywhere have become flawed, leading to a vicious circle of corruption, I tried to put a check on that,” Naidu said.