Exhortations are good, but...

When the going is tough, exhortations are the cheapest. In the wake of the currency crisis, Baba Ramdev has asked us to starve for a week like the soldiers at the borders.  “When there is a war, soldiers face many hardships and starve for weeks. Can't we, for welfare of the nation, endure this hardship for a few days?" Ramdev asked.

The donation box
opened in a church
in Kerala

A church in Kerala opened up its donation box to the public.  People were allowed to take the change available so that they could meet their urgent needs.  That’s better than doling out exhortations.  What’s religion if it only preaches?  Ramdev is a man who owns a business empire whose assets run into thousands of crores of rupees.  Could he not set some examples by providing medicine and food free to some deserving people instead of merely dishing out an exhortation?  Every good deed spreads more positive vibrations than a million exhortations?

My personal experience with the demonetisation has been nothing like any war. First of all, I was fortunate to receive some changes from my workplace like the other employees of the institution. I live in a small village.  On Saturday, I went to the nearest town (4 km) to change eight 500 rupee notes, the maximum allowed.  All the three banks in the town refused to change my notes because they limited the transactions for their account holders citing “shortage of valid currency” as the reason.  So I went to the town where my account lies.  I was told that I could change only 2000 rupees.  Shortage of valid currency again.  I filled in the form and was told to enter the number of each note on the form.  Finally I received a 2000 rupee note blushing pink.  The next problem was where to change that.  I had money but too much for small retailers to accept!

I deposited in my account all the other 500 rupee notes I had.  I was not asked to write the numbers of those notes which were far more in number compared to the four which I exchanged for the pink note.  I couldn’t understand the logic behind why I was not asked to write the numbers of all those notes.

Anyway, I’m now without any “black money” or invalid currency.  What’s more my bank turned out to be a wonderful experience.  The staff looked terribly weary.  I was there at about 3.30 pm, towards the end of the working day.  In spite of the tough day they had endured most staff put on a smile.  That was a learning experience for me.  They were like the soldiers at the border fighting a war.  I salute them. They didn’t preach.  They offered no exhortations.  They worked tirelessly.  With a smile.  That smile inspired me infinite times more than Baba Ramdev’s exhortation.