Elderly persons have very difficult time at banks

Alok Mishra

Patna: People on Saturday jostled with each other to either deposit the scrapped currencies of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denominations or exchange them with the valid currency notes at different banks and post-offices in the Patliputra Colony, a posh colony of Patna. Long  queues were seen at different banks and post-offices since Saturday morning.  Many elderly persons returned without exchanging their notes as the banks and post offices had made no separate arrangements for them.

At State Bank of India, Patliputra Colony branch, women and men rubbed shoulders to enter the bank. Those who reached the bank early in the morning managed to enter inside the bank.  Poonam Devi, 50, had come to the bank to exchange her hard-earned money with her 10 year old son Sanjit. She returned empty-handed as she could not withstand the crowd and the heat inside the bank.  Four ATMs outside the bank premises were closed on November 12 and many particularly the students were seen sitting on the stairs of the ATMs hoping the banks would open these ATMs. But they too returned after waiting for over two hours as they had some other works to do.

Though the managers of this particular bank were asking the people to have patience, the customers were in no mood to listen to their appeals. “What is shocking is that the bank authorities did nothing for the elderly people,” a lady said adding the bank lacked adequate space and there is no sitting arrangement for people like them. Some ATMs near Kurji Mor also remained closed.