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Bhutan currency in Jalpaiguri poses
problem
Jalpaiguri(West
Bengal): Two lakh people living in Jalpaiguri district
are facing problem with Bhutan's currency, Ngultrum
(Nu). Traders are often paid in Ngultrum and not in
rupees. For example, Pradeep Dey, the conductor of a
local bus plying between Madarihat and the Bhutan border,
says that people regularly travel from Bhutan to India
for their business and they tender Bhutanese currencies.
"We get about 400-500 Ngultrum from the passengers daily.
People who do business near the Bhutan border deal in
Ngultrum and we accept it as legal tender and circulate
it here," said Pradeep Dey, a bus conductor. However,
a transaction in Bhutanese currency in India is illegal.
The Central Government has failed to address this issue
and find a solution although certain initiatives were
proposed three years ago. When Bhutan opened its doors
to the global community in 1961, India had helped it
by providing currency notes, even after Ngultrum was
introduced in 1974, the use of Indian rupees continued.
The markets in border areas of Jalpaiguri are flooded
with Ngultrum, resulting in mushrooming of illegal currency
exchange dealers, who charge a commission of nearly
15 per cent or even higher depending upon the element
of urgency.
According
to Dr. Manas Das Gupta, an economist, these trends have
an adverse effect on the Indian economy and they encourage
generation and circulation of black money. Even, the
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has not taken any step to
prevent it. "Ngultrum is used all over Duar region bordering
Bhutan which is creating problems for the residents
of this area. Officially one Ngultrum is equal to one
rupee, but going by the demand and supply concept, one
rupee is equal to nearly about 1.5 Ngultrum," said Dr.
Manas Das Gupta, an economist.
In
October 2004, after the Indo-Bhutan border districts
coordination meet, discussions were held on setting
up official exchange facilities at vantage border points,
but a decision on the proposal is pending. Interestingly,
as the chief guest at the Raising Day celebrations of
Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) on Wednesday (March 27), Union
Home Minister Shivraj Patil lauded the efforts of the
SSB personnel in maintaining law and order along the
Indo-Nepal and the Indo- Bhutan borders. Perhaps, the
SSB personnel manning the borders are either not empowered
to check the inflow of Bhutanese currency into India
and vice-versa or turn a blind eye to the on-going trends.
-March
31, 2007
