Bhubaneswar: It has been a year since the Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency denominations were scrapped as legal tender. Still huge number of banned notes continues to find way into donation boxes at major shrines like Jagannath Temple in Puri, Tarini Temple at Ghatagaon (Keonjhar) and some others in State.
With deadline for exchange of demonetised notes already expired on December 30 last year, the temple trustees are worried about how to exchange the banned denominations.
Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri has received about Rs 18 lakh in demonetised notes as donations. However, as per temple authorities, the RBI has not taken a call to exchange the banned notes despite several pleas.
"We had urged the Reserve Bank of India to request the Finance Ministry for exchange of banned notes. However, the RBI expressed its inability saying that the rule is applicable for all," said Pradeep Kumar Das, administrator of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA).
"We have kept the old denomination notes in our temple chest after the RBI refused to take up the matter with the Union government. We don't know what would be the fate of the notes. The Managing Committee may request the government or dispose of the notes in some other way," said Das.
He said they can't stop devotees from dropping old denomination notes in the temple 'hundi' (donation box).
Of the Rs 3-4 lakh that the temple receives in donations on an average every day, about Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 are in old notes.
"These notes can only be used if any further relaxation regarding exchange of banned notes is made in future," Puri Collector, Arvind Agrawal said.
Senior servitor Krushnachandra Khuntia said "The Centre should instruct the RBI to allow exchange of notes for the betterment of the temple."
Similarly, Tarini Temple of Ghatagaon and Majhighariani Temple of Rayagada have also received huge amount of demonetised notes.
"Banned notes worth around Rs 18 lakh have been received. These are kept in temple chest. We have appealed the State government to take a call on it," Tarini Temple accountant Akshya Behera said.
The Majhighariani temple authorities have collected around Rs 11.53 lakh in scrapped currencies. "We have written to RBI which is yet to communicate. On the instructions of RBI, we can act accordingly," said BH Janardan, superintendent of Majhighariani temple trust.
Interestingly, the Supreme Court had asked the Centre in July this year to offer one last chance to people still holding old notes with genuine reasons. The Centre, however, had declined to open another window for exchange of demonetised notes.
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